Tear You Apart
by EeksandGiggles
Summary: Nicole wanted an escape, but when her brother falls in with a local gang she finds herself at odds with their hot-headed leader. Will she be able to hold what's left of her family together when old demons and a new adversary threatens to tear them apart?
1. Chapter 1

Nicole stared at the clock, counting down the minutes until closing time. It was 9:45 on a Tuesday night and all Nicole wanted to do was go home. The hole in the wall restaurant was almost empty except for a pair of business men who had been there for the past two hours drinking beer and complaining about their jobs. She sighed and continued wiping down the tables and putting up the chairs, hoping the men would get the hint and start to pack up as well. She was usually not in such a hurry to go home, but today had just been one of those days where nothing went right, from the oven breaking down this afternoon to the muggy weather outside, everything seemed to conspire against this day being a good day. At 10:05 the men finally ambled their way up to the cash register to pay their bills, and at 10:07 Nicole flipped the lock on the front door and breathed a sigh of relief.

After helping Nathan, the manager and cook, scrub down the kitchen and put the food away Nicole was finally free to head home, the ringing of the front door as she stepped outside was like a victory bell. The sound of Nicole's footsteps as she walked home mingled with the sounds of the city: sirens, yelling, glass breaking, dogs barking, and an even louder sound of an engine gunning as a black Mustang raced up the street. Nicole shook her head, _I hate this city, _she thought. A little over eight months ago she and her younger brother Paul packed up everything they had and moved from Detroit, Michigan to Columbia, South Carolina in a desperate attempt to start a new life. Their dad left when Nicole was just five, before Paul was even born, and shortly after Nicole turned twenty she came home to find her mom barely alive next to an empty bottle of pills. For two years Nicole tried to make it work in Michigan, taking care of her brother, holding down a job, and keeping the bad guys and boogeymen at bay, but it all got to be too much so they picked up and left. The move had been especially hard on Paul, it was his senior year of high school and he was leaving his school and all of his friends behind. Not only that but instead of finding the peace and quiet they had expected from South Carolina, they just found more gangs, drugs, and violence. Sometimes it felt like they would never get out.

Nicole rounded the corner and cut across the parking lot to her apartment. She pulled her key ring out from her apron pocket, the restaurant owners made all the waitresses wear hokey blue dresses with white aprons tied around their waists and frilly head coverings, they thought it looked "quaint", Nicole thought it looked campy. Nicole went to unlock the door and was surprised to find it already unlocked. _Paul should know better than to leave the front door unlocked,_ she thought, annoyed at how absent minded her brother could be. She walked in and smiled as the air conditioning hit her face_, if there is one thing I will never get used to it is this godawful heat._ She heard the TV on in the living room and made her way back there to check on Paul and remind him to be more careful about locking the door when he comes home. "Hey Paul," Nicole called as she walked into the living room, only to find it empty. She glanced and saw the light on under the kitchen door, "Paul what did I tell you about remembering to lock the door-" Nicole screamed as she opened the door and saw three strange men standing in the middle of the kitchen . Another man was to her left and grabbed her roughly, muffling her scream with his hand. "Shut your fucking mouth bitch!" He snarled. Nicole then saw the crumpled body of her brother lying on the floor, blood pouring from his face profusely. She uncontrollably cried out even louder. One of the men standing over Paul pulled a gun from the back of his jeans. He bent down and grabbing Paul by his neck yelled, "who the fuck is this, huh? Is this your girlfriend? Your mommy? Huh?!" Paul's response came out gurgled and unintelligible. The man tightened his grip around the boy's throat and sniffed, "What's that? I can't hear you." "My sister," Paul managed to spit out. "Well tell your sister here that if she doesn't shut her fucking trap I'm gonna put a bullet in your skull and then in her's." To prove his point he pressed the barrel of his gun to Paul's temple. Nicole's eyes widened, everything about this man spoke truth to his words, from the tribal tattoos running up his arms to his neck, to the furious gleam in his eyes, she could tell he meant business. Her screaming lessened until only soft whimpering escaped from the man's hand. The man over Paul kept his eyes on Nicole as he pulled the gun away from Paul's head and tucked it back into the waist of his jeans, "good girl Sis," he sneered as he stood back up. "Heco, why don't you tell our new friend what we're here for," this man was clearly the leader. The man who had Nicole spoke, "seems little Pauly here has an issue with getting our money to us, so we've come to collect. Problem is he doesn't have the fifteen hundred he owes us." "So Sis, what do you suppose we do about this?" Their leader took a step over Paul and towards Nicole, smirking. He turned and swiftly kicked Paul in the stomach, "Cause I want my God damn money!" Paul let out a groan and pulled his knees towards his chest, and Nicole shrieked behind Heco's hand. The man looked crazed as he turned back to Nicole and stalked forward. Heco let go of her as the man backed her into the corner. He grabbed her by the chin and forced her to meet his eyes, "you and the little fuck get one more week, ONE, to get me my money, or I'll be back here, and I'll put you and your little shit brother six feet under," he tightened his grip till Nicole winced in pain, "and don't even think about goin' to the cops, cause we'll get here faster. Got it?" He slammed his hand into the wall, barely an inch from Nicole's head. She quickly nodded, and he released her. The man headed for the door, followed by the other three.

Nicole rushed over to her brother. Paul could barely move except to clutch his stomach. They had worked him over for awhile before Nicole got there, and it showed. His nose and lip were both bloody and it looked like he would have at least one black eye the next day. His stomach was already bruising from where he had been kicked multiple times, and it looked like they may have even kicked him once in the back. Nicole helped him up, and sat him at the table. She grabbed a towel and threw some ice in it, then she wet a paper towel and hurried back over to her brother. He held the ice to his eye as she did her best to clean the blood off of him. Tears began to leak out of her eyes as the adrenaline and shock faded away. Paul pulled the ice away from his eye, he looked scared and ashamed, "Nic, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to, it was stupid…" The words tumbled out of his mouth. "Who were they? What did they mean Paul? Why do you owe them money?" She whispered, scared of what the answer would be. Paul's shoulders slumped down and his eyes met the floor, "I messed up Nic, I messed up really bad. I started selling for Billy…but one of my loads went missing and…" Paul trailed off. Nicole's fears were confirmed. She had heard of Billy Darley and his gang, but before tonight she had never come across them. They ran a couple of streets on the southside, selling drugs, guns, and anything else that could make them money. "How long have you been doing this?" "About four months. I didn't mean for all of this to happen." Paul sounded so desperate, so scared, Nicole couldn't be mad at him, not now. "We'll figure this out. I promise Paul. We'll find a way to deal with this." Nicole did her best to hug her brother without causing him any more pain. "Why don't you go and get cleaned up ok." Paul nodded and shuffled his way towards the bathroom.

Nicole looked around. She had to get out of the kitchen, she felt sick. _How did this happen?! Why?! Why did this happen?!_ She slammed her bedroom door behind her. Inside her room she paced back and forth until finally she stopped and faced herself in the mirror. Her already pale skin was ghostly white and her eyes were red and irritated from crying. She ripped the head covering from work out of her auburn hair and threw it on the ground. _How did I not see this? How could I have failed this badly that I can't even see when my brother's dealing drugs?_ She turned away from the mirror and paced some more. She stopped and walked over to her closet, kneeling down she dug to the back right corner until she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a small safe that she had bought back in Michigan after the first time their apartment had been broken into. She flipped the combination lock back and forth until it clicked open. Inside she kept only two things, money she was saving for Paul's college fund, and a string of pearls her Grandma left her after she passed away. Nicole pulled out the money and counted it, one thousand even. She figured with tips and her paycheck on Saturday she might have a little over $200, and if she had to she could sell off a few things or ask for an advance at work, and if worse came to worse she knew the pearls would cover it. Nicole sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, then she slid the money back into the safe and clicked it close. _How could this happen?_


	2. Chapter 2

Paul stayed home from school the next day. His left eye was swollen completely shut and even walking caused him pain. Nicole hated leaving Paul alone, but she had to go into work and there was nowhere else for him to go.

"Here take the phone, if anything happens call me at work, call me on my cell, and if you have to, call the police."

Paul took the phone and muttered an "ok". Since the night before he had barely spoken two words and wouldn't even look Nicole in the eye. He was at that age where he thought he could do everything on his own, so having to rely on his sister's help even more than usual was rough on his already beaten pride.

The walk to work seemed particularly long as Nicole went back and forth between checking her phone and looking over her shoulder, but once she got to work time moved even slower. Whenever the door chimed she would jerk her head around to see who it was, and every second she wasn't busy, Nicole was worrying about Paul. Finally at 5:00 Nicole was able to head home, and she couldn't have gotten out of the restaurant fast enough.

The streets were relatively busy with people heading home from work, and Nicole was constantly keeping an eye out for Billy or any of his men; from the few men she had seen, and she assumed that there were more, all of his crew seemed to bear several large tribal tattoos. A block away from her apartment and Nicole was starting to relax a little, until the ring of her phone caused her to jump and begin digging through her apron in a panic. Once she finally managed to find her phone she quickly glanced at the caller ID and breathed a sigh of relief. Her friend Tina's name and number flashed on the screen.

"Hey Tina," she answered, forcing some cheer into her voice.

"Hey Nic, how's it going?"

"Oh, pretty well. Just got off of work, you know," Nicole threw in a laugh, trying to sound normal.

"Oh yeah? That's cool. I was just calling to see how things were going. Maybe see if you wanted to hangout sometime this week?"

Nicole felt guilty, she hadn't gone out with Tina and all the rest of her friends in ages, and now with this Paul situation she knew she had to say no for this week too.

"Oh, I really wish I could Tina, but Paul's having kind of a shitty week. He got in a fight at school and is kind of beat up so…"

Nicole didn't want to tell anyone what happened the night before. She figured it was best not to get anyone involved, both for their safety and because she didn't want to admit that her brother had gotten involved in something so stupid and dangerous.

Tina gasped, "Is he ok? That's horrible! No, I completely understand. I know it's been rough for you guys. Maybe next time? My birthdays coming up, maybe then?"

"Of course, definitely, I promise." Nicole responded, relieved Tina was so understanding, "well hey I am at my door so I think I am going to let you go, talk to you later."

"Bye sweetie."

Nicole kept a hold of her phone as she dug her keys out and slid them into the door. She took a breath before unlocking it and stepping inside. _So far, so good._

"Paul?"

"I'm in here, everything's ok." He called from the living room.

Nicole followed his voice and was relieved to find him as she had left him on the living room sofa. Paul avoided looking at her.

"Listen, we need to talk about this," she said gently. Nicole could tell by his demeanor that that was the last thing he wanted to do. "I've got some money saved back and with my paycheck this week we'll be close to the fifteen hundred, if I have to I can sell some things or ask for an advance at work." He still wasn't looking at her. "Paul, why did you even get involved with those creeps?" Nicole asked earnestly.

Now Paul glanced up, "They said it would be an easy way to make money, and I got so tired of not having any friends."

"Those guys aren't friends Paul, they're thugs!"

"What do you know Nicole!" Paul suddenly shouted back, "you don't know what it's like at school. I don't have anybody! You don't even know them. They're not all bad. I messed up. It was my fault!"

Nicole reeled back in shock, "are you defending them?! Paul, I've known guys like that. You aren't their friend. They're using you. You're their fucking drug mule!"

Nicole regretted those words as soon as they came out of her mouth.

"Yeah I guess you would know wouldn't you Nicole? All you ever did before Mom went away was shoot up with your fucking junkie friends!"

Nicole felt like she had been sucker punched in the stomach. Paul got up from the couch and limped to his room, slamming the door behind him.

Nicole sat in shock. What hurt the most about her brother's words was the truth in them, from the age of sixteen until the day she found her Mom overdosed in the bathtub, Nicole had a drug problem. She started off with simple stuff, weed and shrooms, but quickly escalated into cocaine, ecstasy, and her absolute favorite, heroin. She was addicted, and by the end it showed. She looked gaunt, sunken in, and always had track marks running up her arms. She hated thinking back on those times, and she hated that her brother saw her like that. She knew she hadn't been the easiest person to live with back in those days, always either high or looking to get high, and it wasn't until reality slapped her in the face that she was able to give it up. It had not been a bed of roses though, for the first two months of her sobriety she couldn't sleep, and the withdrawals made her body feel like it was on fire. Even now she still had cravings and every once in awhile her left hand would clench and spasm from all the damage she had done shoving needles into it. The only thing that kept her going was keeping her brother out of foster care, and trying to make a better life for the both of them, one that didn't involve drugs, or gangs. Sitting alone in the living room, Nicole never felt like such a failure.

The week went by quickly. Paul went back to school, wanting to be at home and around Nicole as little as possible. Nicole meanwhile took up extra shifts and even baby sat for the neighbors. Once Saturday came and Nicole got her paycheck she had managed to save just enough to cover the fifteen hundred her brother owed. Now the only problem seemed to be how to get the money to Billy.

When Nicole came home from work Sunday evening she knocked on her brother's door. Paul had been avoiding her all week and only came out of his room when he absolutely had to.

"What?" He called, keeping the door shut.

"Open the door for a second, I just want to talk."

Nicole heard Paul reluctantly get to his feet and unlock the door, not bothering to open it. Nicole took a deep breath and reminded herself that she acted the same way on more than one occasion with her mom. She opened the door and walked cautiously into her brother's room. This would be the first time since their fight that she actually sat down face to face with him. His swollen eye had gone down, and his bruises were becoming fainter, but he still winced in pain when he stood up or sat down. They both sat in awkward silence as Nicole tried to figure out how to begin.

"Look, I've got the money ready…I just need to know where to take it," she finally said. _Boy I never thought I would have to ask my little brother where to find his drug dealer._

Paul shook his head, "I'm taking it."

"No, you certainly are not," Nicole's voice began to rise and she wondered when she started to sound like their mom.

"Nic it's not a safe area and besides you couldn't defend yourself if something happened."

"I don't give a damn, you aren't taking it. I am."

"Not alone you aren't" Paul's voice rose to match hers.

Nicole took another deep breath not wanting to start another fight.

"Fine," she said reluctantly, "we'll both go. It's probably safer to go together anyways."

Even though she hated the idea of taking her brother into a potentially deadly situation, she had to admit that going as a pair did sound safer. Her brother was a good half foot taller than her 5'4 stature, and he was almost twice her size, even in his current state he would fare better in a fight than she would.

"So where do we find this Billy guy anyway?"

"We'll check out the Four Roses first, if he's not there we'll head to his office. Hopefully he'll be at the bar."

Nicole couldn't help but be revolted at the thought of what an "office" for these men would consist of, she also hoped that they would be lucky and find him in the bar.

"Alright, we'll go tomorrow then when I get off of work at 10:00, ok?"

Paul nodded and started to turn away.

"Paul, I'm sorry this move has been so hard on you. I'm doing my best. I promise things will get better for us."

Paul looked guilty, "yeah, I know Nic. I'm sorry too, for everything."


	3. Chapter 3

The clock ticked by slower than ever at work the next day, and Nicole was so scatterbrained that she dropped two plates and kept taking orders to the wrong tables.

"Where is your head today Nicole?" Nathan demanded, "You're usually my best worker. Too many more days like this and I am going to have to start cutting your hours."

"I know. I'm so sorry Nate. I'll be on my game tomorrow, I promise."

Nathan sighed, "alright Nic, see you tomorrow."

Nicole felt bad, Nathan had always been a great boss, giving her time off when she wanted it or extra hours when she needed them, but all she could focus on today was what she had to do after work.

Nicole walked home as fast as she could, ready to get all of this over with as soon as possible. She reached her apartment in record time. She jammed her key in the door and pushed it open, finding her brother already waiting for her in the hallway.

"Let me change out of my work clothes and we'll go ok?"

He nodded his head solemnly.

Nicole figured it would be best to stick out as little as possible, and nothing quite said "attack me, I'm defenseless" like a frilly apron and hat. She yanked out an old pair of faded jeans and a plain black shirt. Once she slipped them on she walked over to her mirror and raked a brush through her hair. Nicole had never really been described as sexy, hot or pretty. Most people referred to her as cute. She had big, brown "doe eyes", as her mother called them, and long, wavy auburn hair. She had small features and a petite, rather un-curvy stature. Though there was one thing Nicole had always liked about herself, her small beauty mark in the inner corner under her left eye. It was quirky and she always thought it made her look a little less average. Nicole took a deep breath, grabbed her purse and the money and walked back out to the hall.

"Ready?"

Paul just nodded again.

The bus dropped Nicole and Paul off about three blocks away from the Four Roses, and despite the tension between them Paul made sure to stick close to his sister in case something happened. Nicole did her best to look straight ahead, and avoid eye contact with the people they passed: prostitutes, ranting homeless men, junkies, and their dealers all seemed to line the sidewalks in droves. After about ten minutes of walking they finally reached the bar. It was a small, run down building with a poorly paved parking lot, wedged in between a shady looking car lot and what appeared to be a condemned apartment complex. Nicole's heart began to beat so loudly it drowned out the sounds of the city.

"They're here."

Paul pointed to two muscle cars parked in front of the bar. While Paul seemed relieved by this, Nicole couldn't help but feel even more anxious. They reached the door and Nicole's heart was beating so fast now she was sure that anyone within a one mile radius could hear. Tremors began to shake her left hand and she gripped it tightly to stop them.

The inside of the bar looked no safer or cleaner than the outside. The air was filled with smoke and had an ominous red tinge to it from the giant stained glass window in the front. Only a handful of people were scattered around, mostly men, and all of them looked like they could potentially be gang members. Nicole was so busy looking around that she didn't notice her brother stop until she ran into him. He barely seemed to notice.

"They're in the back."

Sure enough, there they were. There was a clear division between the rest of the bar and Billy's crew. Billy and another man Nicole didn't recognize were playing pool, three of the others sat in a booth littered with empty beer bottles, and two more sat at the end of the bar. Paul walked forward with his head held up; Nicole was both surprised and worried at how composed he was, like he did this all the time.

Billy leaned over the pool table to take his shot, cigarette hanging from his mouth. Even when playing pool he looked menacing. His stoney blue eyes were emotionless and his black wife beater showed off the massive tribal tattoo that laced up his arms to his neck. Nicole took note of the silver cross that dangled from his neck. _There's the definition of irony._ The other man at the pool table looked up and nudged Billy as Paul and Nicole approached. Billy's response was to send the three ball sailing into the corner pocket before looking up. He had a smooth sense of confidence about him, he knew he was in charge, and he knew everyone else knew it too.

"You have something for me." It wasn't a question.

Paul took the money from Nicole and handed it over to Billy. Billy studied it for a second then threw it to a guy sitting at the booth where it was quickly tucked away into a yellow canvas bag.

"I know I don't have to count it right Paul? Cause even you wouldn't be that fucking stupid."

Billy took a step towards Paul, staring him down. He easily had several inches on Paul, and his lean, toned muscles suggested that he would have no problem overpowering him. Paul glanced down.

"It's all there."

"Good." He slapped his hand on Paul's shoulder, "This shit's not gonna happen again right?"

Before Paul could reply Nicole stepped in.

"No. He's not working for you anymore."

Despite how nervous she was her words carried strength. Billy's eyes flicked to Nicole then back to Paul and he grinned, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"I thought you had to keep dogs on a leash now. You really should put a muzzle on this bitch."

The guys chuckled like it was a funny joke, but his tone was low and threatening, daring her to get in his way. Paul tensed and Nicole's eyes shot daggers but she kept her mouth shut. She had learned back in Michigan what happens when you talk back to men like Billy Darley. Satisfied with her silence, Billy turned his attention back to Paul.

"We'll talk more later, when you lose your babysitter."

His men laughed some more and Nicole couldn't help but be reminded of monkeys at the zoo, following their ape leader.

Nicole was fuming when they got outside to the parking lot. Paul walked ahead, not waiting for her to keep up. She grabbed him by the arm.

"You're done with them right?"

Paul jerked his arm away and ignored her.

"Paul you can't be serious, look what they did to you! I realize your eye was swollen shut, but the other one still works right? Or did they cause brain damage as well?"

He whirled around.

"You can't make all my decisions for me! It's not as easy you think Nic. They're not just going to let me out. That's not how it works."

He sounded frustrated.

"Tell me how it works then. Do you have to end up dead on the street to get out? Is that how it's going to be?"

"Yeah, actually," Paul answered sharply, "it's different with these guys. There's no out until they say you are out, and when they say you are out they take you out."

He emphasized the last part of his statement. Nicole was speechless. She couldn't believe that this was her brother's life and she had never seen it before. Paul turned back around and continued walking. Nicole stood in silence for a minute before jogging to catch up with him. The whole way back home they sat in silence.

Paul was back to giving Nicole the silent treatment. He got up, got ready for school, made breakfast, and left without so much as a hello. She wondered how other people dealt with teenagers, because she was pretty sure her idea of locking him in his closet until he turned twenty would not be socially acceptable. She sighed and finished her morning coffee before heading to work.

The school bell rang at 2:30 and Paul was out the door in the blink of an eye. His week had been crummy enough, and school only added to it. He was hardly a block away from the building when he heard a familiar sound. Turning he saw Baggy pull up beside him.

"Get in kid."

Paul stopped, "No man, I can't."

"Look dumbass get in the car, I'm not fucking playing with you."

Paul continued walking.

"Ahh, I see man. Your sister's got you whipped real good huh? She says jump, you say how high…" Baggy taunted.

Paul stopped, his fists were clenched at his sides. His ego had already taken enough of a beating this week. In his mind he knew he shouldn't go, but Baggy's words stung. He was sick of being treated like a child. Paul walked around to the other side of the car, threw his backpack in the back and slid into the passenger seat.

"Welcome back brother," Baggy patted him on the shoulder before taking off.

Nicole got off work at 6:00 and headed home. She was surprised to find her brother still not back from school. She called his cell phone to check on him. It rang twice before going to his voicemail.

"Hey Paul, it's Nic…I was just calling to see where you were. I guess just give me a call back when you get this…"

She sat in the living room for an hour flipping through channels, waiting for her brother to call back. She was starting to get worried and she tried to avoid thinking about where he might be or what he might be doing. Her phone rang and she jumped up, answering it before she could even check to see who it was.

"Hello?" Nicole sounded anxious.

"Hey girl!"

It was Tina.

"Oh hey Tina," Nicole tried not to sound disappointed.

"I was just calling to let you know about my birthday plans this weekend. You haven't forgotten your promise have you?"

"Oh no, no of course not. I can't wait. I haven't seen everybody in so long."

"Great. I was thinking I would pick you up around 8:00 on Saturday and you could come over and get ready with us girls, do a bit of pre-gaming, and then we could head out to the bar afterwards. Sound good?"

"Yeah, sounds great. I'm off this weekend so that's perfect."

"Cool. Jenn already agreed to be D-D so everyone else is free to drink."

"Oh, good I could use a few drinks."

"I bet! Do you ever go out anymore Nic?"

Tina had a point, Nicole was almost twenty-three and all she ever did was work and sit at home.

"Things have just been really crazy lately. Paul's having a hard time you know?"

"Yeah, he's at that age. Well anywho, I gotta get off the phone. I'll see you later girly."

"Bye Teeny."

Nicole was feeling slightly better knowing that she would at least have something to look forward to this week.

At midnight Paul finally waltzed in. Nicole leapt when she heard the front door open.

"Where the hell have you been Paul?"

"Out with friends."

The way he emphasized the word 'friends' made Nicole want to punch him in his smug face. She refrained. If her own experience with their mother had taught Nicole one thing, it was that the more she tries to pull Paul away from Billy and his goons, the more he would push her away instead. She did her best to remain calm.

"You know you shouldn't be going out so late on a school night."

"What, now that you are an 'adult' you finally give a shit about school? Spare me."

Paul shoved past her.

"Would you at least call me next time so I know that you're ok?" Agitation crept into her voice.

Paul muttered something that sounded like "whatever" and slammed his door.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone! So new chapter, I hope you enjoy it :) I made a banner for the story (for fun, I get bored :p) which you can find on my page (I tried putting the link in here but it didn't work. I'm technologically challenged.)** **Anywho, I hope you like it! :)**

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"I mean, what can I do Nate, he won't listen. And sometimes I can't blame him, look at all the stupid shit I've done." Nicole finally broke down and talked to Nathan about her problems with Paul. Keeping it all inside was beginning to drive her insane, though she made a few modifications and omitted the parts about drugs, Billy Darley and his gang, and the incident at the apartment.

"That's the past Nicole, you're not that person anymore."

"Maybe not, but I still feel like a failure. Sometimes I wish we would have just stayed in Michigan."

"Look, he's going to make mistakes and sometimes you have to let him. As long as they are not life or death mistakes things will be fine."

_Great, _Nicole thought sarcastically.

At home there was serious tension between Nicole and Paul. Every night Paul came back later and later, and Nicole was struggling over how to handle it. What could she do, take away the computer he didn't have or the cell phone that she relied on to get a hold of him? It's not like she could ground him or forbid him from seeing anyone, she worked too much to be able to enforce it and even if she tried he would just shrug it off and leave anyway. Not only that but Paul was becoming increasingly irritable whenever Nicole tried to ask him anything or even just talk to him. Finally she just gave up and joined him in silence.

The weekend had finally arrived though, and for once Nicole felt like she actually had something to look forward to; no work and a night out with her friends, what could be better? Nicole was determined that she was going to enjoy herself no matter what and that meant keeping her mind off of the shit with her brother.

Paul was surprisingly still home when Tina picked Nicole up at 8:00.

"Call me if you need anything, I'll be back kind of late."

She knew what time she would get back didn't matter because Paul would probably still be out, but telling him made her feel like she was doing something more than nothing.

Nicole couldn't have been happier to see Tina, and judging by the massive hug she received upon entering the car, Tina felt the same way. Tina was the same age as Nicole and she worked as a manager at a small boutique in town. She had thick, dark brown hair that always behaved, exotic features, and a body that belonged on the runway. Basically she was every woman's nightmare. Not only that but she was nice too, making it impossible to properly hate her.

"I feel like I haven't seen you in ages! What have you been up to?"

Nicole shook her head. "Being a responsible adult I guess."

"Well that ends tonight. I'm so excited! I invited a bunch of people and my brother might even stop by when he's done working."

Nicole needed a night like this, out of the apartment and away from her problems. She felt immense gratitude for Tina as they sped off down the street.

When she walked into Tina's living room Nicole was immediately engulfed by her two other close friends, Jenn and Marcy. It was tradition whenever the girls went out that they would always gather at Tina's and get ready together.

"It's about damn time you finally came out with us again!" Jenn exclaimed.

"Seriously Nic. Where the fuck have you been?" Marcy chimed in.

"I know, I know." Nicole replied, "I'm the worst friend ever, but I'm here now." She gave an apologetic smile, hoping she wouldn't get too much shit tonight for ditching out so much recently.

Tina walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of vodka and some shot glasses. "I say we take shots. Cheers to being irresponsible and immature!"

Nicole laughed, "No, no, cheers to Tina, the birthday girl, may she always age recklessly."

"Amen," she replied as she downed her shot.

After the girls had a few drinks, minus Jenn who agreed to do all the driving for the night, they decided to start getting ready. Tina had an extensive wardrobe from working at the boutique for so long, so everyone always borrowed clothes from her.

"Ohh, Nicole I have the cutest dress for you to wear, come see."

Tina ruffled through her overstuffed closet until she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a white vintage looking dress. It was about knee length with lace overlay and buttons that ran up the front.

"Don't you think that's a bit dressy for bar hopping," Nicole asked nervously, she was hoping she could just get away with wearing some jeans and a nice shirt.

"Nah, we're all dressing up. It'll be great, we'll make all the guys go crazy. Besides I think the white will compliment your hair really well."

Tina picked out everyone's clothes for the evening. Marcy ended up in a cute polka dot halter dress that went down slightly past her knees. While Jenn got a stunning off the shoulder, tight fitting little red number that came to her middle thigh. For herself, Tina chose a classic black cocktail dress.

"Simple, yet effective," she winked.

Nicole and Marcy always stuck together when it came to getting ready for a night out. They preferred simple clothes and makeup, both of them being more the "cute" type than "sexy" type. Marcy had chin length brown hair, bright green eyes, and smile that always reminded Nicole of Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman; it was adorable and could melt even the coldest heart. Jenn and Tina however both went for a more daring approach to their style. Jenn could be described as your typical all American girl. She had the body of a runner, blonde hair, blue eyes, and a face made for Covergirl ads. She looked stunning even in her usual sweatpants, T-shirt attire.

At around 9:30 more people began showing up to Tina's apartment. Nicole knew a few of them, and recognized a couple of girls well known around town for their less than favorable reputations.

Nicole leaned over to Marcy, "how does Tina know all these people?"

Marcy shrugged, "No clue, I think some of them she might know through her brother."

By 10:15 the living room was full of an eclectic mix of people: some from the boutique, some were childhood friends, cousins, next door neighbors, it looked like everyone Tina knew had shown up. At 10:30 the group separated into several cars and left for the bar.

They arrived at popular bar called The Swing-In, Nicole had always heard about it but never actually been. When they got inside it surprised her how many people were there.

"I didn't even know there were this many people in Columbia," she had to shout for Tina to hear her over the music.

"I know right?" She shouted back. "Come on, I got the VIP area for the night."

The VIP area was a large roped off corner that looked out onto the main dance floor. It had long black couches all along the walls, tables with alcohol and glasses already set out, poles, and a small bar area. The décor was all very sleek and modern, something rather out of the ordinary for Columbia, South Carolina.

Nicole grabbed Tina and walked her up to the bar, "please allow me to buy the first drink of the night for the birthday girl."

Tina smiled, "only if you get one too."

"Deal."

Tina looked to the bartender, "two Long Island iced teas please."

_Leave it to Tina to pick a drink with like five types of alcohol_.

Nicole took a sip and grimaced, "that is strong."

Tina clinked her glass against hers, "cheers to that."

Tina's party got crazier and crazier as the night went on. Many of her friends bought rounds for everyone, and Nicole was getting drunk fast. Marcy had grabbed Tina and the two were up on one of the poles, while Jenn and Nicole sat back on one of the sofas laughing.

"Do you think Marcy will even remember this tomorrow?" Jenn asked.

"How many drinks has she had?"

"No clue, but I've never her seen her this wild before."

Nicole caught a couple of guys eyeing her and Jenn up and down, "I think we have some admirers."

Jenn glanced in the direction Nicole was looking, "Ech, not exactly charmers are they."

Nicole chuckled. While they weren't particularly her type, it reminded her how long it had been since she had even been on a date. Her last _relationship_, if it could be called that, was back in Michigan and it didn't exactly bring up the fondest memories.

Tina looked over and saw them sitting on the couch, she waved them over and Nicole could see her shouting the words, "Come on."

"I think we're being summoned," Nicole laughed.

"You go, I can't pole dance sober, it goes against everything I stand for."

Drink in hand, Nicole sauntered up to her two friends.

"Are you having fun?" Tina shouted.

"Not as much fun as Marcy," Nicole yelled back.

Tina laughed, "I don't think anyone is having as much fun as Marcy."

"Then I think you need another drink. Come on." Nicole grabbed Tina by the arm. "Hey Marcy, you want anything?" Marcy shook her head and continued dancing.

Tina and Nicole stood, waiting to get the bartenders attention when Tina spotted someone.

"Hey, my brother made it!"

Nicole turned to look and was horrified when she saw Tina's brother. He was one of the men from her kitchen!

"Tommy! Tommy!" Tina shouted and waived her arms trying to get his attention.

Tommy had a large tribal tattoo on the side of his face and looked about as friendly as a crocodile.

_No, this can't be the sweet brother Tina is always talking about. There's got to be a mistake._

Nicole felt sick. Her heart was racing and her hand clenched. Tina's waving caught Tommy's eye and he waved back to her, then he turned and motioned to someone behind him. Billy and two of his other guys appeared. Nicole's stomach dropped.

_I gotta get out of here. Where's Jenn?_

She looked around, but Tina grabbed her and started to drag her towards the guys.

"Hey Tina, I think I need to sit down. Or maybe just get some water," Nicole was becoming frantic.

"Are you ok? We'll just say hi really quick and then we can go to the bathroom."

"I can meet him later, it's fine really. Maybe I should check on Marcy or go sit with Jenn so she's not alone?"

But Tina was oblivious to her friend's desperate resistance and continued to pull Nicole through the crowd, only letting go once they finally reached the guys and she went to hug her brother. Nicole did her best to avoid looking at them, but it was impossible once Tina pulled away and started to introduce her.

"Nic this is my brother Tommy and his friends Billy, Jamie and Baggy."

Nicole managed a meek, "hey," and a small wave, keeping her eyes to the floor the whole time.

Tommy and the other guys smirked, but Billy remained emotionless and stony-eyed. Tina turned her attention back to Tommy.

"The bar and stuff is in the back, Nic isn't feeling well so I'll be back in a bit."

Tommy nodded, grin still in place, and led the guys to the back.

Once they were alone in the ladies room Nicole started to calm down. She cupped some water into her hand and drank it.

"Isn't Billy gorgeous?" Tina was touching up her make up in the mirror, "I mean, that would never happen, I've known him for forever, but damn he looks good. You know Nic, you should go for him, you need some excitement in your life."

Nicole looked at Tina in the mirror like she had lost her mind.

_If only you knew just how "exciting" my life is right now._

"I think I'll pass on Scarface, thanks anyway."

Tina laughed, "You know Al Pacino was pretty cute in that movie, and he and Michelle Pfeiffer had a pretty good run…before everyone died."

Nicole rolled her eyes, "yeah, living is something I enjoy, so I'm still gonna say no." Nicole paused. "Hey Tina, why didn't you tell me your brother was…you know…"

Tina shrugged, "not exactly something you bring up in light conversation Nic. But they're all good guys, they can just be rough if you cross them. They've always watched out for me, and my brother. They're like extended family."

"Right. No yeah, they seem…nice." Nicole tried to sound sincere, she didn't want to ruin one of her only friend's birthday by screaming that she thought her brother and his friends were creeps and that Billy was their creep king.

"You look a little better. I bet you just got overheated from the crowd. You damn northerners can't handle all this southern heat!"

Nicole chuckled, "Yeah, I'm sure that was it. I feel fine now."

Tina suddenly hugged Nicole, "thanks so much for coming out. I really did miss hanging out with you."

Nicole hugged her back, "I missed you too Teeny, you're like my best friend. I miss hanging out with you all the time."

Tina finally pulled away, grinning from ear to ear. "Alright come on girl, let's get back out there!" She headed for the door and Nicole followed, resisting the urge to run into one of the stalls and lock herself in until the night was over.

They reached the VIP area and found that the guys had already made themselves quite comfortable. Several of the girls were hanging around them, giggling and flirting obnoxiously. Nicole was starting to feel anxious again.

"I think I'm gonna go get a drink," she said, but Tina held her back.

"Hold on, I bet I can get one of the guys to get our drinks," she winked as she strolled over to them.

Nicole glanced around nervously. Her eyes landed on Billy who was seated at the end of one of the sofas, cigarette in hand, with a girl leaning down and whispering into his ear. He caught Nicole's stare and his expression became smug, like a cat that had just caught a mouse. He could see the distress rolling off her in waves.

_Breath. Calm down. He can't do anything here. Everything is fine. I told myself I would have fun no matter what. I'll just go wait for Tina by the bar._

It didn't take long for Tina to join her at the bar followed by Baggy. Baggy was tall and slightly chubby with a blonde mohawk. He had a goofy sort of smile on his face that made him seem less intimidating than his friends, that and he hadn't been present for the kitchen incident.

"Baggy offered to buy us drinks Nic. Isn't that sweet of him?"

Nicole was pretty sure Tina could ask any guy for their left arm and they would offer her the right one up as a matching set.

"Oh yeah…um thanks Baggy," Nicole forced a smile.

Baggy bought three shots of tequila and Nicole grimaced. She hated taking shots, she was always mixed drink kind of person. The bartender slid their shots towards them. Tina handed Nicole hers and held her own up for a toast.

"Cheers," Baggy said gruffly, clinking his shot against theirs and downing it no problem.

Nicole and Tina followed suit. Tina managed her shot ok, but Nicole's burned her throat and she began coughing uncontrollably.

"Nic are you ok? You want some water?"

_Cough _"No I'm-" _cough cough _"-fine"_cough_.

Baggy laughed, "damn girl, you need to man up, that shit was nothing."

Nicole shot him glare, but he just smiled back.

"How about I buy you guys a beer this time? Think you can handle that?"

Tina pushed Baggy playfully, "be nice Bags, Nic hasn't been out in awhile."

"I'm always nice, ask your friend Kelly," Baggy made a vulgar sign and Tina shoved him towards the bar.

"Quit being gross and just go get the beers you jerk."

She turned back to Nicole who had stopped coughing but was still a little red in the face.

Tina joked, "he probably shouldn't brag about that. Half the guys here have been 'nice' to Kelly."

Nicole had only met Kelly a couple times, but from what she could tell the girl's fake boobs probably had more in them then her head did.

She chuckled, "do me a favor Teeny. Make sure we avoid those guys."

"What guys?" Came a concerned voice from behind them, "Is someone fucking with you Tina?"

Tommy had been waiting for a drink when he overheard part of their conversation. Billy was behind him leaning against the bar, beer in hand, even in such a relaxed stance he looked menacing.

"Slow your roll Tommy. She meant avoiding all the guys who've been with Kel."

Nicole wasn't sure but she could have sworn she saw red in Tommy's cheeks.

"You should probably leave then." It may have sounded like a joke, but when Billy's eyes met Nicole's she could see he wasn't kidding.

Nicole's hand twitched and she laughed nervously. Tina didn't notice the tension between them.

"She'd sure as hell have to avoid your crew. I'm pretty sure the only reason Kelly even came out tonight was to try and hookup with you and finish the collectors set."

Billy took a cigarette out of the pack in his back pocket and lit up. "I don't like sloppy seconds," he smirked.

"I bet I could find you a girl you'd like." Tina gave Nicole a mischievous grin.

Nicole felt her stomach churn. "Ineedsomefreshairexcuseme."

She bolted for the door before anyone could respond. _I need to go home. I need to get out of here._ Nicole weaved in and out of people until she reached the door and pushed it open. The air outside wasn't exactly fresh; it was muggy and smelled like smoke. Nicole felt her head spin, whether it was from the alcohol or how distraught she was, she didn't know. She heard the door to the bar open, music spilling out into the night, and then it closed again, muting the sounds from inside.

"Are you ok? I was just playing around. I didn't mean to upset you like that." Tina sounded concerned.

"I'm fine, I think I might have just drunk too much," Nicole lied.

"Yeah, you look pretty pale. You want me to see if Jenn will drive you home? She's probably annoyed that everyone else is drinking but her anyways."

"What about you and Marcy?"

"We can either get a taxi or hitch a ride with my brother and his friends. It's really no problem."

"Thanks Tina, sorry I'm being so lame on your birthday," Nicole managed a small smile.

"Psh, when have you not been lame? I'm used to it by now." Tina grinned and ducked back in the bar.

A few minutes later and Nicole heard the door open again. She turned, expecting to see Jenn but instead Billy marched out the door and past her into the parking lot. Tina followed shortly behind him, stopping when she reached Nicole.

"Jenn kind of…gave in to temptation. She's totally fucking wasted, up on the pole and everything, but Billy can drive you home."

The lump returned to Nicole's throat. The last thing she wanted was a ride from that psycho. "No, it's fine, I don't want to be a bother. I can catch the bus."

"Nic, you're drunk, sick, and the bus stop is like a billion blocks away. Billy's taking you home."

"I can make it, really. I'll be fine."

"Don't be an idiot Nicole."

While the girls argued back and forth Billy pulled his car up to the front of the bar. The car was a black, vintage muscle car of some kind that made a beastly, guttural growl as it sat idling. Nicole didn't move.

Billy rolled the passenger window down. "Quit being stupid and get in the fucking car," he snapped impatiently.

Tina pushed her toward the car and Nicole reluctantly got in. Tina leaned in the passenger window, "call me tomorrow. If you are feeling better we'll go for coffee." She gave her a peck on the forehead and backed away from the car.

Billy sped up the streets like a bat out of hell and Nicole found herself gripping her seat until her fingers hurt.

"Too fast for ya Sis?" Billy had a taunting grin on his face.

"No," Nicole croaked, but Billy made a sharp turn causing the tires to squeal and Nicole to slam her hand against the door out of habit.

"No?" He sneered.

Nicole ignored him, he was trying to bait her. She wouldn't give him that pleasure.

Billy pulled up to Nicole's apartment building. She breathed a sigh of relief, surprised they had made it in one piece. During the drive he had done everything from running red lights to hitting turns at such high speeds that Nicole could have sworn the tires left the ground. She practically had to peel her fingers off of the car seat.

She reached for the door, "thanks for the ride," she muttered.

Billy was lighting up another cigarette, "I have to pick Paul up for work anyway."

Nicole froze, the word 'work' stuck to her like a thorn. She turned to face him.

"Look, my brother-"

Billy interrupted her. "Save it Sis, your brother is a big boy. He can make his own decisions."

He exhaled the smoke and Nicole got the impression he thought the conversation was over.

"That doesn't mean I'm going to watch him throw his life away selling drugs and doing god knows what for a bunch of low life thugs," Nicole's voice rose.

Billy's expression became dark and he moved closer to Nicole, her head hit the window as she backed away from him. "And what are you going to do about it?" He sniffed, his steely blues eyes glinting dangerously.

Nicole didn't back down, owing it to the several glasses of liquid courage she had drunk throughout the night. "Maybe I'll call the cops."

Wrong words.

Billy moved so fast Nicole didn't even have time to blink. He struck her, causing her head to ricochet off the window so hard she was surprised it didn't shatter. Then he grabbed her by the hair and yanked her out of the seat roughly, holding her by the neck with his other hand.

"Whadyou fuckin say bitch?"

He squeezed down on her throat, cutting off her air supply. Nicole began choking and made sickening gurgling noises as she struggled to breathe. She tried desperately to pry his hand from her throat, but Billy ignored her. "You got some fucking mouth you know that. You'd think someone with your past wouldn't act so fucking stupid. I'm gonna tell you this once, keep your fucking nose out of my fucking business or I'll put a goddamn bullet in your pretty little head."

With that he released her. Nicole gasped. Her heart was pounding and her head was spinning from everything she was feeling at that moment. She was surprised, scared, angry, relieved to be alive, and also in pain. Her hands shook as she fumbled to open the door. She couldn't get out of the car fast enough. Indeed she was so focused on getting away from Billy that she barely noticed Paul pass her on the way to Billy's car. She was still shaking when she reached the apartment door, and her hand began to spasm uncontrollably, making it even harder for her to get the key in the lock. Something red dripped onto her hand. She reached up, her nose was bleeding.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey! Sorry it took me awhile to get this chapter out. Thanks for all of the kind reviews and any suggestions you guys have for me, it really puts a smile on my face :). Anywho, I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading!

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The next day Paul seemed even more distant, if that was possible. Nicole could guess what had happened. Billy would have relayed parts of their conversation to Paul, most likely carrying over the threat for Paul to keep his nosy sister out of things. Paul would resent Nicole for trying to "make his decisions for him", hence the cold shoulder she was now receiving. However, for once Nicole welcomed the silence. She couldn't help being irritated at Paul for siding with his new friends, especially after what they had done. Not only that but he had apparently been blabbing to everyone about her past drug problems. Even if it was just Billy Darley and his thugs, she hated for anyone to know about the person she used to be. She had to keep telling herself that shipping Paul back to Michigan's child protective services wouldn't solve anything.

Nicole called Tina around lunch time to see about getting coffee, and they agreed to meet at a small café near Tina's work. Nicole searched through her dresser for something cute to wear. Tina always dressed so stylish and trendy that Nicole felt she should at least try to look somewhat presentable when she went out with her. She chose a light blue, short sleeve button up shirt and a pair of dark denim shorts. After slapping on some makeup she threw her hair into a messy bun, picked up her purse and sunglasses and headed for the door.

Nicole yelled to Paul that she was leaving, but he was locked in his room and gave no response. She rolled her eyes and flipped open her phone to check the time and to text Tina to let her know she was on her way. As she was texting she opened the door and stepped out, only to jump back in surprise when she bumped into someone. Baggy, the man she knew as Heco, and a dark skinned man she didn't recognize stood outside her door.

The dark skinned man spoke. "Where's Paul?"

Nicole glanced between the three of them, debating on whether or not she had the courage to tell them to fuck off. Before she could answer, she heard Paul's bedroom door open and close. He shoved past her and joined the guys who were now heading towards their car.

"Hey!" She exclaimed, "Are you even going to fucking tell me where you are going?"

Paul didn't answer, he didn't even bother to stop. Baggy turned around though.

"Don't worry Sis, we'll take good care of Pauly. Oh and you should stop by the Roses sometime, I still owe you a beer." He grinned and winked.

Nicole huffed before slamming the door shut and locking it. She headed down the steps as the car sped off. Even though she did her best not to think about it, she couldn't help wondering where they went or what they did all the time. She slipped her sunglasses on and tried to put it out of her mind.

Tina was already sitting outside the café when Nicole got there, and she smiled as she pointed to the chair across from her. She had ordered Nicole's favorite drink, a chai latte, and had it ready for her when she arrived.

"Thanks Teeny. What do I owe you?"

Tina shook her head. "Don't worry about. You can get next time."

Nicole smiled and took a sip. "How was everything after I left last night?"

Tina laughed. "It was fun, but I don't think Marcy will be up for drinking again for very a long time. She puked all over the taxi. I had to tip the guy fifty bucks to get him to drive us all home after that, but that's probably better than what would have happened if it had been the guys. They treat their cars like they're babies. Billy's the worst, he…"

Tina trailed off as if she suddenly remembered something, then she glanced nervously at Nicole. "Speaking of Billy, did you get home ok?"

Nicole looked up from her drink and subconsciously rubbed the bump on the back of her head. "Uh yeah. It was fine. He drives like a nut, but I got home ok."

"Good. Yeah he can be kind of a scary driver." Tina paused and looked like she wanted to say something.

"Is everything ok Teeny?"

"Yeah, everything's fine…it's nothing"

Nicole was unconvinced. "What's going on?"

Tina sighed. "How do you know Billy?"

Nicole was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"How do you know him? The way you freaked out when he showed up, and then how hard it was to convince him to give you a ride home; which trust me, getting Billy Darley to drive a pretty girl around is rarely ever a hard thing. Not to mention how badly you wanted to take the bus when I know for a fact you despise public transit."

Nicole sat in silence, thinking of what to say. Should she tell her friend the truth? Tina's brother was already hanging out with Paul, surely Nicole couldn't keep it from her for too long.

She didn't have time to come up with an answer because Tina started again. "Are you back on drugs? Is he your dealer? Did you borrow money from him? Buy a gun? Hook up with –"

Nicole had to stop Tina there, "No, no to all of that stuff. I am not back on drugs, he's not my dealer, I don't owe him money…anymore, I've never even held a gun, and we have definitely not hooked up. And if we had hooked up, don't you think he would be more willing to drive me home?" Nicole joked.

Tina cracked a smile. "Clearly you don't know Billy _that well_."

"I know him about as well as I'd like to, and I think the feeling is mutual." Nicole paused before continuing. "My brother kind of fell in with him, selling and stuff. Let's just say I walked in on a little surprise party of theirs in my kitchen and we've been _friends_ ever since."

Tina's mouth fell open in shock, "Paul? Paul is working for Billy? I never would have guessed."

Nicole nodded, "Apparently he has been for months, and now suddenly I am the bad guy for wanting to get him out."

Tina's expression abruptly turned somber. "Nic, I know you don't like them or what they do, and I know how protective you are of Paul, but whatever you've been doing, or thinking about doing to get Paul out, you should stop."

Nicole started to say something but Tina stopped her.

"I hated when my brother joined them too, but there's nothing you can do about it. Believe me you don't want to get on their bad side, and if you make things hard on them, they can take it out on Paul."

Nicole sat there quietly, thinking about what Tina was saying.

"I don't mean to freak you out or anything. Like I said, those guys are like extended family, but they take what they do seriously. It's a business to them, and no one gets in the way of their business."

Nicole thought about what Tina had said the whole way back to her apartment. As much as she hated the idea of just letting it go and let her brother continue down this path, she knew Tina had a point. Billy made it very clear that he had no qualms with violence, but the fact that Tina felt the need to warn her of this made Nicole all the more nervous. It seemed she was going to have to roll with the punches for the time being, but she was determined not to completely give up.

Nicole decided to enjoy the rest of her day off by vegging out on the sofa and watching one of her favorite movies, _Ever After_. Midway through the movie she heard the front door slam. She got up and peeked in the hallway to check on her brother and was surprised to find he wasn't alone; Baggy and the dark skinned man from earlier were standing with him. Paul looked white as sheet and was visibly shaken. He barely glanced at Nicole before mumbling something about a shower and scurrying away. Nicole eyed the bathroom door with a look of suspicion before turning her gaze to Baggy and the other man.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing Sis. Don't worry about." Baggy replied.

"You're telling me not to worry when my brother looks like he just saw a ghost. What happened?"

Baggy looked towards the other man, obviously trying to decide how much, if any, he should tell her.

"Some tweak pulled a knife on him."

"What?!" Nicole's voice came out sounding high pitched and strangled.

Baggy quickly tried to diffuse the situation. "He's fine though, just a little rattled. The guy didn't even come close to stickin' him. Heco was with him the whole time."

Nicole stood in stunned silence, she assumed this was supposed to comfort her, but somehow the idea of her brother selling drugs on a street corner with Heco as back up was anything but comforting.

The other man turned to Baggy, "We still have to go to the office and let Billy know what happened."

Nicole jerked back to reality at this.

"The office?"

Her brother had mentioned something about "the office" but she still had no clue where or what it was.

"Yeah, the old mental hosp-" Baggy was interrupted by the other man jabbing him in the side with his elbow. "What Bodie? It's not like she's gonna call the cops."

Bodie shot Baggy a look that told him to shut it, and Nicole wondered where the hell they came up with all these names.

Bodie turned to Nicole. "Why don't you do everyone a favor and stop asking questions. And take it easy on the kid today alright. He's had enough as it is."

" Excuse me? _I_ should take it easy on him?!" The two men turned to leave, ignoring Nicole's fury. "I'm not the one sticking him out on some shady street corner to get stabbed by a crazed drug addict!"

Bodie slammed the door shut, leaving Nicole alone and enraged. She let out an exasperated huff. Paul was still in the shower and she had a feeling he would be in there for awhile. She stormed into her room, shut the door, shoved her face into one of her pillows and let out a long awaited scream.

Nicole sat in her room until she heard the bathroom door open. She listened as Paul padded down the hall and into the living room.

_At least he's not locked in his room, that's a good sign._

Nicole slowly made her way down the hall, listening as Paul flipped from channel to channel.

"Hey, I was going to make some dinner, you want anything?" She asked hesitantly.

Paul shook his head numbly, not taking his eyes off the TV.

"You wanna talk?"

He shook his head again.

Nicole decided not to press her luck. She made a box of macaroni and cheese and was sure to leave plenty of leftovers in case Paul got hungry. As she sat there eating she contemplated what to do. Tina's advice of staying out, along with Billy's threat, sat heavily on her mind. However her brother's life being put at risk was making it hard for her to simply stand there and do nothing. Eventually she decided she couldn't sit silently by anymore; now all she had to do was find Billy.


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone! I hope your having a great week, mine has been super crazy. One of my housemates got married and I got to be a bridesmaid (crazy!). Anywho, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and I appreciate any feedback you've got for me :)

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The bus dropped Nicole off three blocks away from the Four Roses, but unlike her last visit this time she was alone. She figured the bar was the best place to start her search for Billy. After all, it's not like he could kill her in public right?

When she reached the parking lot she saw no sign of the two muscle cars, but continued on to the bar anyway. Inside was just as dark, dingy and busy as last time, but there was no sign of Billy's crew, let alone Billy himself. Nicole debated on who she should ask for directions to the mental hospital. She figured the bartender was out of the question, he most likely knew Billy and his crew and probably had some sort of loyalty to them. She eyed the patrons of the bar, sizing them all up. However the decision of who to approach was soon made for her.

"What's a fine girl like you doing in this part of town?"

Nicole turned to find a man around her own age. He was a little shaggy looking, but other than that he wasn't very intimidating.

"Actually I am looking for my friend...ummmm Bodie..."

Bodie was the first name to pop into her mind besides Billy, and she had a feeling mentioning Billy's name would draw unwanted attention.

"It seems he isn't here though. He told me if he wasn't here to meet him at....oh dear what did he say... something about it being near an old mental hospital? But gee for the life of me I can't remember where he said it was."

Nicole pulled her best damsel in distress impersonation.

"The nut house by the bridge, out on Stygian? I don't think you want to go out there," he lowered his voice, "a bunch of cookers work out of there, it's a real rough neighborhood."

Nicole feigned a look of surprise. "Oh my! No he must have been mistaken. Well thank you anyway for your help." She turned to leave.

"Hey wait!" The guy reached out to stop her, "why don't you stay and have a drink? Maybe your friend will show up."

"Oh uh...thanks, but I really have to get going…"

Nicole dashed out the door before the man could say anything else.

The bus route map showed that Stygian street was only a few blocks away from the Four Roses, which made sense seeing as the bar appeared to be their main haunt. Nicole took the number four bus over, making sure to note where it dropped her off so she would be able to find her way back.

_Now which way do I go. _ Nicole had never been in this part of town before and it was getting dark out.

An old woman pushing a shopping cart ambled by.

"Excuse me, ummm, ma'am?"

The woman stopped and gave Nicole a suspicious glare. Nicole pulled a five dollar bill out of her wallet.

"I'm looking for the old mental hospital. Do you know where it is?"

The woman's eyes widened. She pointed to the road behind Nicole and snatched the money from her hands. When the woman turned around Nicole could have sworn she heard her mumble something about "fucking ice heads", but she shook it off and headed in the direction the woman had indicated.

Broken glass and empty beer cans littered the street, and with every step Nicole had to be careful not to trip over someone passed out on the sidewalk. A few of the people she passed eyed her with the same suspicion the old woman did. It was obvious she didn't belong there. She began to think she should have changed out of her shorts and blouse, it made her look like some stupid yuppy just asking to be mugged. Nicole picked up her pace.

Finally she came upon the bridge. Across the street she saw a decrepit, aging building surrounded by a chain length fence. There was a weather worn sign in the front lawn that still read Memorial Mental Asylum, and a long paved drive wound its way up to the front of the building, but the gate that led to the property was padlocked. Nicole checked around to see if anyone was watching her before she tried the lock. No luck, but the chain that held the gate together was loose enough to allow Nicole to squeeze through.

The asylum and the property it sat on was surprisingly beautiful considering what it used to house, and what it was now used for. Large oak trees lined the road up to the entrance which was framed by several large, marble columns and a once grand, now mossy, stone staircase. Nicole found herself admiring the sprawling green lawn and rustic architecture of the building. It had a sort of antique charm to it. Nicole had always been a fan of old buildings.

As Nicole came to the top of the drive one of the muscle cars came into view. It was a vintage mustang, black with red tribal decals up the side and on the hood. She recognized it at once as the same one Billy had driven her home from the club in, a good sign that he was inside.

Nicole's hand trembled as she climbed the steps; it felt as if she was marching up the gallows stairs to her doom.

_This is for Paul. _

She was five steps from the door.

_I can do this._

Four.

_I am strong._

Three.

_I am brave._

Two.

_I am not scared shitless. _

One.

_Stuff like this was a lot easier to do when I was high._

Nicole reached the top of the stairs and was greeted by a set of foreboding double doors. At one time they may have been welcoming, but they had not aged well. The polish was completely worn away and the wood had turned a dismal blackish-grey. Large cracks marred the once smooth surface, and the handles were in need of much more than polishing. Nicole took a deep breath before wrenching open one of the doors. It creaked so loudly she was surprised not to find an army of tattooed gang members waiting for her in the entrance hall, but as it was the hall was empty except for a few odd and end things left over from its hospital days. A large reception desk was decaying in the middle of the lounge area, and behind it were two sets of stairs that led up to the second floor, one going to the right, one going to the left. Narrow corridors branched off of the main hall leading, she assumed, to the old patient rooms.

Nicole figured that if Billy and his crew were cooking they would need a larger space, possibly something like the cafeteria or recreation room. She looked around, hoping to see some sort of sign or map.

"GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE NOW, YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT. YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE HERE AN HOUR AGO!"

Nicole jumped at the sudden disruption of the silence by the familiar voice. Her hand clenched and she began to rethink her decision to come here. Billy was clearly not in a good mood and she was already on his shit list, but even with her brain screaming at her that this was a bad idea, she followed the voice down the hall to her left.

"I GOT ENOUGH SHIT TO DEAL WITH. I DON'T NEED TO FUCKING BABYSIT YOU!"

Scaffolding and sheets of plastic littered the dimly lit hall, and several times Nicole had to dodge random piles of paint cans, buckets, and other loud when bumped into items.

Eventually the hall led Nicole to a large, open room. Metal tables were scattered around, covered with standard cookshop items: funnels, jars, tubs, lighters, coffee filters, and an array of household chemicals.

"I DON'T GIVE A SHIT, GET DOWN HERE NOW OR I WILL FUCKING GUT YOU!"

He flipped his phone closed and slammed it on one of the tables.

Billy was at the other end of the room, his back turned to Nicole. She could hear him sniff as he ran a hand over his shaved head. Nicole paused for a moment, gathering her courage. She cleared her throat and knocked lightly on the table next to her, announcing her presence. Billy whirled around, and from across the room Nicole could see the fire raging in his eyes. He reminded her of a spring loaded trap, ready to snap at any moment.

"What the fuck are you doing here?"

He took several long strides, quickly closing the gap between himself and Nicole. She instinctively stepped back, colliding with one of the tables.

"I…uhhh…"

Nicole scrambled to collect herself. She gripped the table tightly, fighting to keep her left hand still but it spasmed uncontrollably.

"I umm…"

Billy didn't bother waiting for a response.

"You just don't fuckin' learn do ya?" He snarled.

If looks could kill Nicole would be flat-lining.

She thought Billy was angry the night before, but she could tell coming here crossed the line. He slammed his hand on top of hers, crushing it against the cold steel until it was unable to move. She tried to stifle her yelp as the bones ground together, but it only came out sounding strangled and more pitiful than ever. His voice became a low growl and he spoke slowly, either in an attempt to control his rage or to emphasize his point.

"I am losing my patience and my temper." He backed her further into the table and leaned down, his face so close to hers their noses were practically touching. "I don't know what the fuck you're doing here, and I don't care, but I suggest you turn around and go back the way you came before I make your brother an only child."

He stared her down until she dropped her gaze. Then he released her hand and she quickly pulled it to her chest, rubbing it gingerly. It throbbed in pain as the blood came rushing back.

Billy took a step back and sniffed. "Get the fuck out."

Nicole didn't move.

"NOW!"

She flinched but stood her ground. Instead of heading for the door Nicole reached inside her purse and pulled out the string of pearls her grandmother left her. She held them out towards Billy. He eyed her with contempt.

"What the fuck is this?"

Nicole's voice shook as she spoke. "I want my brother out."

Billy rolled his eyes and turned to walk away.

"They're real and worth at least five hundred."

He ignored her and continued walking, but Nicole wasn't done. She reached out and grabbed him by the elbow.

"I'll give you part of my paycheck every week. Fuck it, I'll even get two jobs! I'll do anything. I just want my brother out."

Billy paused but didn't turn around. Nicole shoved the necklace into his hand. He studied it for a moment, running his fingers over the smooth pearls. Then he sniffed, handed the necklace back and continued walking away.

Nicole snapped. All the events of the last few weeks were wearing her down. She was losing her brother, losing her strength, and losing her mind. She grabbed an empty jar from the table behind her and threw it as hard as she could at Billy's head. It missed and shattered on the floor two feet behind him. Billy spun on the spot, his eyes wide with fury and his jaw clenched.

"WHY!? WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO TAKE AWAY THE ONLY FAMILY I HAVE LEFT?!"

Nicole's body shook with rage as tears streaked down her cheek. Within seconds Billy was towering over her. She could see his hands balled up into tight fists, ready to strike out at any moment. When he spoke it was through gritted teeth.

"I haven't taken shit from you. Paul came to _me_. It's not _my_ fault that you can't even take care of your own goddamn brother. It's not _my_ fault that _my_ life has more to offer than yours. Let's face it _Sis_, what can you give the kid that I can't?"

Nicole sobbed but before she could respond Billy grabbed something off a nearby table and thrust it into her hand. She looked down in horror when she realized what it was.

"Maybe this will help you get that stick out of your ass." He sneered and turned to leave.

This time she didn't try to stop him. Her eyes remained locked on loaded syringe in her hand. All the demons she had fought off for over two years suddenly came rushing back. She felt her knees buckle and she crashed into the cement floor.


	7. Chapter 7

Hey everyone! Sorry it took so long for me to get this out. I am finishing up my school year (my last final is tomorrow!) so hopefully this summer will give me more time for writing. This chapter is a lot longer than my others, so hopefully that will make up for my lack of updates. Anywho, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

Nicole stumbled into her apartment; the familiar euphoric high had her in its grasps. She could feel the heroin coursing through her veins. It made her skin feel warm and tingly, and left her with a soft buzzing in her brain that blocked out all of her worries. It felt like she was floating. The hallway swayed back and forth with every step she took. She was in ecstasy. A goofy grin was plastered on her face, and her eyes rolled back in her head listlessly as her body slumped against the wall, knocking down one of the picture frames that hung there. The frame hit the floor with a loud bang, sending shattered glass everywhere. Nicole shrieked with laughter as she slid to the ground, not particularly caring that she was sitting in broken glass or that she was laughing loud enough to wake the entire block. Paul tore his door open and held up an old wooden baseball bat, ready to defend himself against what he thought was an intruder. He looked around wildly until he spotted his sister.

"Nic? Is that you? What the hell are you doing?"

Nicole just banged her head back against the wall and chuckled.

"Are you drunk?"

Nicole shook her head in an exaggerated fashion.

"Nooooooo."

Paul furrowed his brow and then the realization hit him. The bat clattered to the floor.

"You're fucking high aren't you?"

"Nooooooo."

"Yes, yes you fucking are. You are high as a goddamn kite Nicole!"

She giggled, and let her head fall back against the wall.

"I'm _flying_ like a kite."

She let out a contented sigh. Paul stared at her incredulously. Over two years she managed to stay clean, and now out of nowhere she comes home so high she can't even see straight. He walked up and down the length of the hallway, rubbing his hand through his hair, getting angrier as he went. Nicole still sat in a daze, but was now humming cheerfully and examining her fingers with great interest. Eventually he stopped pacing and turned to face Nicole.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" He shouted furiously. "How could you even think of going back to that shit? Are you brain dead?"

"What? You don't back the product you sell Paul-y?" Nicole taunted.

"Is that what this is about? Are you trying to fucking prove something by killing yourself?"

Nicole rolled her eyes.

"Oh calm down, it's all in good fun. Hey! Maybe you can be my dealer now, you can get me the family discount." She joked.

"Go to hell." Paul snarled.

"Wooooah! Strong words for a kid who used to sit in his room and cry because big sis and her junkie friends made him feel _uncomfortable_."

Nicole was being ugly and she knew it, but at that moment she was too high to care.

In a blind frenzy Paul grabbed the closest thing to him, the bowl that usually held sets of keys, and chucked it at Nicole. It barely missed her head, but she didn't care, she hardly bothered to duck. Instead she sat there in a stupor, covered in glass and bowl shards, grinning stupidly. Paul was fuming. He marched into his bedroom and slammed the door so hard the rest of the pictures on the wall threatened to fall as well.

Ten minutes later Paul emerged from his room carrying a large duffle bag. Nicole was still sitting against the wall, her head hanging heavily against her chest. Her bare arms and legs were covered in small scratches from the broken glass that littered the floor. Her head lulled to the side as she struggled to get a look at her brother. Her eyes flicked to the bag in his hand. She let out a dry laugh.

"Leaving so soon _dad _?_"_

That was a low blow she knew it. Paul had never met their dad, and he held a deep resentment of the man for walking out on them. Her dig hit him hard. His eyes became slits and his mouth formed a hard line.

"You're one to talk _mom_. You know, I'm surprised you didn't just jump in the bathtub with her. I'm sure she had enough pills for the both of you."

Nicole felt that one hit in the pit of her stomach. She stood up shakily.

"I guess it's too bad that instead I gave up everything I ever had to take care of my snot nosed baby brother."

Paul took a step towards her.

"No one asked you to."

"Oh yeah, what was I supposed to do? Let you get lost in the system? Pulled into some shit 'family' who collects foster kids like stamps, and uses them for the government checks? Two seconds in that life and you would have been crying for me to come save you."

"I could have taken care of myself." He shot back.

Nicole snorted, "Clearly. But then who would have bailed you out when you fucked up and owed some drug pusher money you didn't have?"

Paul took another step forward. Nicole stared him down defiantly. Before an all out war could erupt between the siblings a loud pounding shook the front door. Paul shot Nicole a furious glare before ripping the front door open. There stood Billy Darley, as ominous and threatening as ever.

_Lovely._

"Well how about that, it's the devil himself. Come down to Georgia looking for a soul to steal? We were just talking about you." Nicole jeered.

"Shut up Nicole."

Paul's blood was boiling but Nicole just cackled. Billy eyed her curiously.

"How much did she dose?"

"Fuck if I know. She came back like this."

Paul motioned to his sister who was having difficulty remaining standing.

"I took the whole needle," She mumbled, a crooked grin on her face.

Billy groaned and raised his hand to his forehead.

"Jesus Christ, it's lucky she's not dead."

Paul grumbled, "Yeah, real lucky. Come on, let's get the fuck out of here."

Paul turned to head for the door.

"Oh hey Billy, I never told you thanks for today."

Paul froze.

"First hit's always free right?" Nicole piqued.

Paul shot Billy a questioning look, and Billy's face hardened.

"Come on Paul. I'm already sick of this junkie bitch."

Billy sniffed and turned to leave. Paul took one last look at Nicole, let out a frustrated huff, and followed Billy to his car. Nicole collapsed, her high still in full swing. She wouldn't feel any sting of pain or remorse until morning.

Paul glanced over at Billy as they sped off. Billy puffed away at his cigarette.

"What was she talking about?"

Paul watched Billy's reaction closely.

Billy shrugged, "I gave her the stuff."

He was completely indifferent about the whole thing.

"WHAT?"

For a split second Paul contemplated putting Billy's head through the driver's side window. Billy must have sensed Paul's short lived mutiny because he shot him a look that could crack stone.

"I told you to rein your sister in, that if she tried to start shit one more fucking time _I_ would take care of it. She came looking for me, throwing some necklace in my face, trying to bargain with me. She's lucky I didn't shoot her right then and there. I gave her the shit, but I didn't think she'd shoot it all. I thought maybe she'd chill the fuck out if she just dosed a little."

Paul let out an annoyed sigh.

"Look, I didn't put the goddamn needle in her arm, but if you got a problem with what I do tell me now. Cause I need to know if I can trust you or not, especially if you're gonna get initiated in."

Billy stared him down. Paul reluctantly shook his head.

"Nah man, no problem."

Billy watched him carefully.

"Alright, good." He pulled into the parking lot of shady looking apartment complex. "We'll get the rest of your stuff tomorrow. You can stay with me until we find you somewhere more permanent to live. Heco's got an open room, but I don't think you wanna be living with another junkie."

Paul didn't move to get his things, just stared straight ahead, thinking about what all he had gotten himself into.

Billy clapped him on the shoulder. "Come on man, let's go."

The next morning Nicole woke up with a screaming headache. She was still in her clothes from the day before, and apparently had made no move to actually get under the sheets in her bed, instead she had just sprawled out over them wildly. She sat up groggily, scrunching her eyes, trying to remember what happened that led to her feeling so hazy this morning. Slowly, bits and pieces came flooding back to her: her conversation with Tina, Baggy explaining what happened to Paul, going out to find Billy, throwing the jar, the syringe in her hand, the feeling of the needle being shoved in her arm, the warmth as the heroin was carried through her veins to the rest of her body, and finally a vague memory of fighting with her brother before he stormed out with Billy. She dropped her head in her hands.

_I really fucked up this time._ Regret swept over her. _Paul's never going to forgive me. I'm such an idiot! _She groaned and fell back in the bed, scrunching up into a ball. _What am I going to do now?_

The sound of the front door swinging open caused her to jerk up.

"Paul?"

She quickly climbed out of bed.

"Paul is that you?"

She yanked her bedroom door open to find Paul, Billy, Baggy, and Bodie standing there. Paul looked at her out of the corner of his eye, but other than that he refused to acknowledge her.

"It's this way guys."

He led the way down the hall to his bedroom. Billy hung back while the rest of the group followed Paul. He eyed Nicole up and down.

"Woo-ee Sis, you ain't lookin' so good. Rough night?"

Nicole self consciously ran a hand through her knotted hair. He smirked knowingly before joining the rest of the boys in Paul's bedroom. Nicole stood there dumbfounded for a moment before rushing after him. She froze once she reached the room.

"Paul! What's going on?" She asked frantically.

Bodie and Baggy were dismantling Paul's bed. He kept his back turned to her as he emptied out his dresser.

"I'm moving out," he mumbled.

"What? No… You can't!"

He shook his head dismissively and continued to pile clothes into a large suitcase.

"I messed up, I'm sorry, but it won't happen again. Please, PLEASE don't do this." She pushed past Billy and grabbed Paul by the shoulders. "Paul, don't mess up your life just because you're mad at me," she pleaded, but he just ignored her and threw more clothes into his suitcase. She tried desperately to grab the clothes from him and put them back in the dresser, but he just shoved her away. She felt her heart sink in her chest. "Paul…please…you're all I have." She whispered, the tears already forcing their way out and down her face.

He stopped for a moment and looked at her. There was a mixture of sadness and anger in his eyes.

"Just leave me alone Nic."

"But Paul-"

"Alright come on Sis, you heard the man."

Billy grabbed Nicole roughly by the waist and began forcing her towards the door. She sent her brother an imploring look, but he just turned away. Billy shoved her out the door, and slammed it behind her.

Nicole watched helplessly as the three men loaded all of Paul's belongings into a white van. All her begging and crying fell on deaf ears as the guys came in and out of the apartment without so much as giving her a second glance. Even the usually jolly Baggy was stoic and avoided her tearful gaze. Eventually Paul's room was empty. He even took down the posters of his favorite bands, leaving the place completely devoid of any sign that someone had once lived there. He followed the three older men out to the van. Nicole trailed behind, trying one last time to convince her brother to stay, but it was useless. The four of them piled into the van and the door slid shut, the latch clicking dryly. Nicole clung onto the railing of the apartment steps as she watched the van speed off down the street.

Later that day Nicole made two phone calls, one to Nathan at the restaurant to say she was too sick to come in to work, and the other to Tina. Nathan reluctantly agreed to call in another server. She rarely called off so there wasn't much for him to say, and he could tell in her voice that she needed the rest. As for Tina, Nicole knew she was going to need all the help she could get to make it through the day. After over two years of sobriety, to then shoot up such a large amount of heroin, she was feeling the after affects. Withdrawals were hitting her full force. She had the shakes, the chills, puked until her stomach was empty, and after that she just dry heaved. She spent most of the day curled up in the fetal position with her head in Tina's lap, crying. Tina patiently sat and listened to her friend sob.

"I really screwed up this time. Paul's never going to come back. He hates me, and I deserve it. I fucking deserve it."

Nicole's face was red and blotchy from all of her crying. Tina stroked Nicole's hair lovingly.

"Paul doesn't hate you. He's just upset. He'll forgive you. Just give him time, he'll come back. Trust me."

Nicole sniffed.

"Besides, I've seen how Billy lives…Paul will be back," Tina joked, trying to get a smile out of her friend, but Nicole only managed a half hearted chuckle.

Nicole waited a week but heard nothing from Paul. Two weeks, nothing. Three weeks, a month, two months went by and she still heard nothing. She did her best to stay busy: taking up more shifts at the restaurant, going out with her friends, she even started going to narcotics anonymous meetings (which unsurprisingly had a huge following in Columbia). But everyone seemed to give her the same advice, give her brother time and space. The past two months she had given him nothing but space. She didn't call him, she didn't look for him, she left him alone and focused on fixing herself, but none of it seemed to be doing a bit of good.

It was a Wednesday night and Nicole was curled up, alone, on the living room couch watching reruns of I Love Lucy. She hated nights like these, when she was home by herself. The empty apartment reminded her how much she screwed up.

All of her friends had work in the morning, and when she asked Nathan if he needed help he told her, "I do have other waitresses Nic, they need shifts too. You need a break anyway, no one can work all the time."

She started circling ads in the newspaper for a second job ten minutes later.

_Can't work all the time my ass._

Just as Lucy was shoveling chocolate in her mouth and down her shirt, Nicole's phone rang. Whenever her phone rang anymore Nicole would practically jump out of her skin, and tonight was no different. She snatched the phone off of the coffee table and quickly checked the number. It was a 313 number, a Detroit number. Nicole thought about ignoring the call. She had a lot of enemies back in Michigan and she wasn't in the mood for any harassment tonight, but she caved into her curiosity and picked it up before the voicemail could kick on.

"Hello?"

"Hello, is this Nicole Bellemare?"

"Yes, who's this?"

"I'm Cindy Wall, calling from the Reuther Psychiatric Hospital. Are you Catherine's daughter?"

"Yes."

Nicole was confused why someone from her mother's hospital would be calling her.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news. Your mother passed away this morning."

"What? What do you mean? What happened?"

Nicole hadn't seen or spoken to her mother in almost three years, but the news of her death still hit her hard.

"One of our orderlies found her this morning. We think she stole a belt off of one of the other patient's robe…"

"Wait…she…she hung herself!"

Nicole sunk back into the couch in disbelief.

"I'm sorry Ms. Bellemare. Your mother was with us for over two years now, her loss hit many of us hard. She was a wonderful woman."

Nicole simply nodded into the phone.

"Ms. Bellemare?"

"I'm still here," Nicole croaked.

She could feel her throat tighten as the tears welled up in her eyes.

"I hate to unload all of this on you at once sweetheart," the nurse spoke in a sweet, honey-like voice, "but I am afraid we will need you to come and claim the body."

_The body…_

Nicole couldn't believe that only 24 hours ago her mom was Catherine Bellemare, and now she was _the body._ Nicole struggled to keep it together.

"Of course," she cleared her throat, "I can be up there by Saturday."

"Alright dear. I'm so sorry for your loss."

She sounded sorry. Nicole morbidly wondered if the nurse practiced her "sorry" voice.

"Thank you."

"Your welcome honey. Take care, and call us if you have any questions or need anything."

Nicole clicked her phone closed and laid back down. She curled her body around her pillow and sobbed.

Later that night Nicole tried to call Paul for the first time since their fight. As she expected he didn't answer.

"Hey Paul, umm this is Nicole. I really need to talk to you, so just call me back please."

She didn't think a voicemail was the right way to tell him their mom had died. She waited up a few more hours to see if he would call back before calling it a night.

Nicole knew Thursday was going to be rough, but she had no idea it would be this rough. She called what was left of her family to let them know what had happened, none of them seemed too grieved. They probably only remembered her mother from the few times she showed up drunk or drugged to family get-togethers, and stumbled around slurring about how much she hated everybody. In the end Nicole couldn't blame them for their indifference. She called her mom's friends next; half of their numbers were disconnected and the other half could only muster semi heartfelt condolences. Nicole began to wonder if anyone cared about her mom.

After calling three funeral homes to get estimates, Nicole had no clue how she was going to pay for it all. A burial was out of the question, they were all priced upward of $6000. The only other alternative was cremation and that still set her back about $1000, and with the cost of the bus ride to and from Michigan plus a night in a hotel she was looking at over $1500. Even with all of her extra shifts she had nowhere near that amount of money. Nicole dropped her head in her hands and groaned, but she was soon interrupted by her phone. Tina's name appeared on the screen. Nicole quickly grabbed it, desperate to hear a friendly voice.

"Hey Tina."

"Hey Nic. I saw you called earlier. What's up?"

"Yeah, I'm trying to get a hold of my brother-"

"Nic, you need to give it time. I promise you-"

"No, Tina…it's not that. Our mom died yesterday…" Nicole's voice trailed off.

"Oh Nicole, I'm so sorry! I didn't know. Are you ok? What happened? Do you need anything?"

Nicole took a deep breath before answering Tina's barrage of questions.

"I'm doing ok. The hospital said she hung herself. The only thing I really need right now is to get a hold of my brother."

Nicole didn't feel like elaborating, she had already answered those same three questions countless times today.

Tina gasped. "She hung herself? Oh Nicole…I'm so sorry."

"Thanks. I'm taking a bus up there tomorrow, but I'd like to get a hold of Paul before I leave."

"I'm assuming your brother isn't answering his phone."

Nicole shook her head. "No. I've called him three times today already."

Tina clicked her tongue, a habit she had whenever she was thinking.

"I haven't seen him around with Tommy recently, but I can give my brother a call and see if he'll help out. I don't know if it will work, you know how annoyed those boys get when you try to interfere, but I'll do my best."

"Thanks Tina, it really means a lot to me. My plan is if I can't get a hold of him by tonight I'll just go down to the Four Roses and see if he'll talk to me there."

Tina paused a moment before replying.

"I'm not sure if that's a good idea Nic."

Nicole sighed. "It's not, but there's nothing else I can do. Besides, none of my bad ideas have killed me yet."

"It's not the bad ideas I'm worried about killing you."

It was 10 pm and Nicole still hadn't heard from Paul.

_Maybe I'll wait just fifteen more minutes._

She had been waiting "fifteen more minutes" for the past hour. She gnawed her lower lip.

_If I wait too late he won't be there. I need to just go and get it over with._

Reluctantly, she grabbed her purse, finally working up the courage to go, and headed out the door. The bus ride over seemed to take hours, and with each stop it made came a little voice in the back of Nicole's head telling her that there was still time to back out. She was nervous. It had been months since she'd last even spoken to her brother. She was afraid how he might react, what he might say when he saw her. Her hand twitched. She ignored it and stared out the window: rusted chain length fence, overgrown empty lots, trashcan fires, and stumbling drunks.

_Might as well of stayed in Michigan._

The bus dropped Nicole off the three blocks away from the Four Roses.

_Talk about déjà vu. _

Where time seemed to slow down on the bus, it sped up on the streets. It seemed to take Nicole only seconds to reach the bar.

Thursday must have been the big night to go out for a drink because the parking lot was packed, and a few of the patrons stood out front chugging down beers and passing around a pack of cigarettes. Even with all the other cars it wasn't hard to spot the black Mustang and red Duster. Where most cars were jammed in together like sardines, the two muscle cars were given a wide berth. Nicole stopped in the parking lot, deciding to call her brother one last time.

**Ring Ring Ring Ring**_. This is Paul. Leave me a message._

Nicole swallowed hard and took a deep breath before making her way to the door. A few of the men out front leered at her, but they let her pass without a problem.

The bar was crammed, and Nicole had to squeeze her way through the crowd of people.

_I see Thirsty Thursday is still alive and kicking._

She bumped a few drinks, got a few "watch it's", and more than once she felt a hand get acquainted with her rear, but eventually she could make out the back of the bar. She didn't see Billy, but she did see Paul. He sat at a booth with a few of the guys and several of your typical bar sluts. Nicole shoved her way through and was almost there when she felt an arm wrap around her waist and twirl her around.

"Oh no. Nuh uh. No way in hell."

Nicole tried to wriggle free of her assailants grip.

"Baggy let me go!"

But Baggy held tight and pushed his way to the door with Nicole in tow.

"Not a chance in hell. You need to get the fuck out of here before anyone sees you."

Nicole was surprised to find it wasn't anger in his voice but concern.

"No, I need to talk to my brother, just trust me. Let me go."

Baggy forced her back out the front door and into the parking lot before letting go.

"If your brother wanted to talk to you he would have answered your calls. Now get out of here before you get yourself into anymore trouble."

He turned to go back in the bar but froze when he saw Billy come out of the bar after them. Billy flicked his cigarette and stalked over to Baggy and Nicole.

"Go back inside," He growled at Baggy.

Baggy looked back and forth between Billy and Nicole before deciding to obey orders. Billy turned his attention to Nicole.

"What the fuck are you doin' here? Huh?" His voice became progressively louder, "Do you have a fucking death wish?"

Nicole took a step back. She could see the anger building in his eyes.

"I really need to talk to my brother." Her voice was barely more than a whisper.

Billy wiped his hand over his face and let out a frustrated laugh.

"It's like a fucken broken record with you! You just don't fucken get it."

He took a step towards her. Nicole saw him reach behind his back and she knew what he was going for, she had seen him pull the same move in her own kitchen. But before he could grab it the door of the bar swung open and Paul made a bee line for the two of them, followed closely by Baggy and Bodie. Billy let go of the gun concealed under his t-shirt and took a step back from Nicole as Paul rushed past him. Paul grabbed Nicole roughly by the arm and pulled her away. He walked her a few feet away from the group before letting go.

"Go home. Now."

"Paul I really need to talk to you. Please."

"I have nothing to say to you. Go home."

He turned back towards the bar. Nicole grabbed his arm.

"Just wait one second, please!"

He turned back to face her, exasperated.

"Fine. What?"

Nicole glanced over at Billy and his men and pulled Paul's arm to direct them out of earshot of the group.

"Mom passed away yesterday."

She kept a hold of his arm, mainly to support herself. It was one thing to call family members she didn't care about to tell them her mother died, it was a completely different thing to have to tell her younger brother.

The anger disappeared from Paul's face and was replaced by confusion.

"What? What do you mean?"

"The hospital called last night. They said she passed away yesterday morning."

"What? What happened?"

Nicole spoke to her feet, "She hung herself."

Paul took a step back. Nicole looked back up, he was shaking his head.

"I'm so sorry Paul."

She could feel the tears building up, and she sniffed in a vain attempt to stop them.

"So…So what happens now?" He asked.

She could tell he was trying to act like he wasn't as upset as he was.

"Well," she cleared her throat, "tomorrow I'm taking a bus up to Michigan to claim her, and then I was going to…I was going to have her cremated and bring her ashes back here…I guess."

Paul was looking away, but nodded his head.

"Is that ok?" Nicole asked softly.

Paul finally met her eyes again.

"Yeah, I mean what else can we do?"

Nicole felt horrible. She knew the thought of their mother being cremated was bothering her brother.

"I wish we could have a funeral Paul, but I just can't afford it. I had to sell Grandma's necklace just to pay for the cremation."

Paul just nodded again. Nicole didn't know what else to say. She wanted to throw her arms around him, to tell him how sorry she was for everything, for how their lives turned out, but she held back. Instead the two stood in silence until Paul finally turned and walked back to the three men. Nicole wiped away the tears rolling down her face with the back of her hand.

_So I guess that's it,_ she thought sadly.

Even after all of this, Paul was really done with her. Nicole turned to walk back to the bus stop, not wanting to stand there and make more of fool of herself than she already had.

"Hey Nic, stop."

Paul was talking to Billy but held his hand up for her to wait. Nicole had a feeling Paul was explaining what she had told him. After a minute or two Billy nodded, pulled Paul into a one armed hug, and shoved something into his hand. Paul walked back over to Nicole.

"Come on, I'll give you a ride home."

Nicole was surprised, but just nodded her head and followed him over to the Duster.

The ride home was awkwardly silent. Nicole stared at her brother out of the corner of her eye. He looked older somehow, rougher around the edges too. He would be 18 next month, but he could have easily passed for 20. His dark brown hair had grown out into a messy mop and she could see a hint of scruffy facial hair around his chin. Nicole gnawed her lower lip, trying to come up with something to break the silence.

"So…how's school going?" She asked hesitantly.

Paul shrugged, "I dropped out."

"Oh…ok."

She wanted to tell him how stupid it was to drop out, even she managed to graduate and she had been high half the time. But she kept her mouth shut. The last thing she wanted to do was start another fight.

"How's work?"

Nicole was relieved that, at least for the moment, Paul wanted to keep the conversation going.

"It's good. Been working a lot actually, keeping myself busy. You know, idle hands…"

"Are the devil's playthings." Paul smiled. "I think that was Gran's favorite saying."

"She certainly said it enough." Nicole chuckled at the memory.

Paul nodded and the car was quiet again.

"You know I went to a couple NA meetings."

"Really?" He sounded surprised.

"Yeah, they kind of helped, but mostly they just made me think about drugs so I stopped going…" Nicole paused for a moment, "I've stayed clean though, since that night anyways."

Paul was pulling up to the apartment.

"That's…great."

The car fell silent.

"Well, thanks for the ride."

Nicole moved reluctantly to get out of the car.

"Will you let me know when you get back? I'd like to stop by and you know…pay my respects to mom."

"Of course."

Even though she should have been sad with the current events, Nicole was glad to have her brother back, at least in some sense.

Paul awkwardly patted his sister on the shoulder. "Alright well, be careful Nic."

She cracked a small smile. "Thanks, you too. I'll see you soon." 


	8. Chapter 8

Nicole sat at her kitchen table staring down her mother's urn. The trip to Michigan had been mentally draining, but for a place that had such a history for her it was rather uneventful. She had arrived there late in the evening on Friday, and collected her mother's ashes on Saturday. But that wasn't the mentally draining part, at least not all of it. On the way to claim her mother she had passed some of her old haunts. Every corner and street in Detroit seemed to hold some sort of memory, and not all of them were pleasant. Nicole was relieved to leave there as soon as possible on Sunday morning. And now she sat at her kitchen table, face to face with her mother for the first time in years.

She sighed and dropped her chin into her arms, never taking her eyes off the polished, shiny black urn. Her mother's name and date of birth and death were engraved on a silver tag that hung from the lid by a delicate chain. Nicole gently ran her finger over the letters. She considered scattering her mother's ashes over Lake St. Clair. Her mother used to take her and Paul there when they were younger, and it was one of the few places that held happy memories for their family. But in the end Nicole wasn't ready to release her mom, at least not yet. So she brought the ashes back to Columbia with her, and besides, Paul still needed to say his own goodbyes.

A small knock came at the door and Nicole lifted her head off the table. The door was unlocked and only a few seconds after knocking Paul peered around the door.

"Nic? You here?"

"I'm in the kitchen."

Nicole got up to meet her brother in the hall. Paul appeared even scruffier than before. He looked like he had been out drinking all weekend, in fact he probably had.

"Hey stranger." Nicole managed a small smile.

"Hey. How was Michigan?"

"Same as it always was. I'm glad to be back."

Paul nodded. "Is it...is she…in there?" He pointed towards the kitchen.

"Yeah, on the table. I can wait out here if you want to be alone."

Paul mumbled some form of thanks and disappeared into the kitchen.

Nicole anxiously waited in the hall, scared that if she breathed too loud the fragile bond she had with her brother might shatter. She leaned back against the wall and chewed nervously on her thumbnail, a bad habit she adopted recently. Another knock at the door caused her to jump. Billy slowly creaked the door open and looked around before noticing Nicole. He sniffed and stepped inside. Nicole eyed him apprehensively. She hadn't forgotten the night before she left for Michigan.

"I came to check on Paul. Where's he at?" He asked suspiciously.

"He's in the kitchen. I thought I'd give him a minute to say goodbye."

Her voice trailed off and she let her gaze fall, avoiding Billy's icy stare. He didn't reply, and an uncomfortable silence filled the air. She shifted feet.

Nicole was startled when Billy finally spoke.

"What's with your arm?" He pointed to her left arm. She self consciously gripped it with her right hand to try and steady the jerking motion.

"It's nothing, muscle damage."

Billy snorted.

"Let me guess, too many needles, not enough veins?"

Nicole's face burned.

"Something like that," she mumbled, not in the mood to argue.

Paul eventually joined them in the hall.

"You ready to go?" Billy asked.

Paul looked back at Nicole. "I was kind of thinking I might stay here for a bit, you know, help out a little. I mean if that's ok with you Nic."

Nicole was stunned speechless. Billy and Paul were both staring at her, waiting for her reply.

"Of course, sure, that would be great."

Paul smiled, relieved, but he could tell Billy didn't think it was a good idea, so he pulled him aside.

"It'll just be for a bit," he lowered his voice, "I just want to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid."

Billy was still unconvinced but nodded anyway.

"Alright, but call me if shit starts getting bad. Me or one of the guys will pick you up for your shifts."

"Alright I will. Thanks man."

Billy clapped him on the back, and before he left he shot one last look back at Nicole. It was an obvious warning to play by the rules.

Paul stayed with Nicole for a week before deciding to move back into the apartment. Nicole was ecstatic. Baggy and Jamie helped Paul move his stuff back into his room, and Nicole was relieved that Billy was absent this time. Even though Paul was back, things had changed. Nicole knew that to keep her brother in her life she would have to resign herself to his new life and part of that meant she would have to at least be civil to the guys. Something that was easier said than done, especially when it came to Billy.

* * *

Nicole opened the door to her apartment, glad to be home after an exhausting day of work. She dropped her keys in the new bowl in the hallway.

"Paul? I brought dinner home from the restaurant."

Nicole made her way to living room. Paul and Baggy were sitting on the couch watching a movie. Baggy grinned.

"Bring anything for me Sis?"

"Maybe Paul will share his with you," Nicole joked as she handed Paul the take home box.

Out of all the guys, Nicole got along with Baggy the best, and while she wouldn't necessarily choose to hangout with him, she didn't mind doing so when he came over.

"I'm going in the kitchen, do you guys want anything?"

"A coke," Paul said through a mouth full of food.

"Wanna make me dinner?" Baggy shot Nicole his most innocent, pleading look.

She rolled her eyes. "I'll make you a grilled cheese."

Nicole heated up a pan before grabbing the bread, cheese and butter. She froze when she heard a familiar deep voice from the living room. Even though Billy was at her apartment regularly to pick up her brother, she was still uneasy around him.

"Hey Billy, what are you doing here?" Nicole could hear Paul ask.

"Just got done at the corner, Heco was a fucking no show, again." He sounded agitated, as usual. "Bodie told me you two were here hanging out, and I could use a break."

"Pull up a chair, we were just getting ready to start 300."

"Thanks, you got anything to drink?"

"In the kitchen."

Nicole heard the door open and Billy's heavy footsteps behind her.

"You can cook Sis?" he asked sarcastically.

Nicole took a deep breath.

"Do you need something Darley?"

Billy ignored her and grabbed a beer from the fridge before rejoining the guys. Nicole sighed and flipped Baggy's sandwich onto a plate. She grabbed a coke from the fridge and followed him through the door.

The next day Nicole was sitting at home, flipping through a magazine when someone knocked at the door. Since her brother moved back her apartment had become much more popular, but it was too early in the afternoon for it to be any of the guys. She yanked the door open. A tall, scrawny, dark haired man in his mid twenties was standing in the doorway. Her mouth fell open.

"Wade?"

"Nicole!"

Nicole enthusiastically threw her arms around the man.

"Oh my goodness I haven't seen you in years! What are you doing here, how did you find me?"

The man grinned at her joyful reaction.

"I'm traveling across the country. I stopped in Michigan and was told you moved down here, did a little searching and here I am."

Nicole's face fell with a sudden realization.

"You know Wade, I'm not who I used to be…"

Wade had been one of her drug friends. There had been five of them in the group: Wade, herself, Jay, Cat, and Tracy. Wade left Michigan the year before Nicole got clean and fell out with all of her friends. Wade laughed.

"I've been clean for almost four years now. I stopped using after I moved to California."

Nicole smiled in relief.

"I was clean for almost three, but I had a set back a few months ago. I've been working on getting back on the wagon since then."

Wade smiled and nodded understandingly.

"Oh, excuse my manners, please come in."

Nicole couldn't have been more happy to see her old friend. She grabbed two drinks from the fridge and her old photo album from her bedroom. She and Wade spent the afternoon catching up on old times.

"Oh wow, look at this."

Wade pointed to a picture of their old group of friends. They were lounging on a beat up couch, and it looked like they were at some sort of party, but Nicole couldn't remember where or when the picture had been taken.

"Oh man, 90's fashion," she giggled.

"I don't know, I think you pulled off the mall goth look very well."

Nicole smacked his arm playfully.

"What about you? Were you trying out for a boy band?"

Wade laughed. "I wasn't as bad as Jay. He wanted so badly to be like Marky Mark. Do you remember how low he wore his pants?"

Nicole nodded. "Hey, you said you went to Michigan. Did you see anybody from the old group?"

Wade's face lost its humor.

"I asked around some, but none of it was good." Wade paused, staring at the old picture. "Jay's locked up for good. Went on a bad trip and shot up a 7/11. Tracy's in the hospital. I visited her one day, she's really sick. She got hepatitis from sharing needles. And Cat passed away a little over a year ago from an overdose."

Nicole felt her heart sink in her chest.

"It took me forever to find out what happened to you. You know, your name isn't a popular one."

Nicole smiled weakly. "I would imagine. I hope it didn't get you into too much trouble."

"Not too much. I heard about your mom though, I'm sorry."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, comfortingly. She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder.

Nicole and Wade were still on the sofa reliving their teen years when the front opened.

"Paul?" Billy called from the hallway.

Wade looked confused. "Who's that?"

"He's a friend of Paul's." Nicole quickly excused herself.

She found Billy in Paul's room.

"Where's your brother?"

"He's not here."

"I can see that. Where'd he go?"

Nicole ignored Billy's rudeness.

"I think he went out to get food."

Billy ran his hand over his head.

"Fucking great." He eyed Nicole. "Who were you talking to in the living room?"

Nicole was hoping Billy hadn't noticed that she had company.

"An old friend."

Billy raised his eyebrows. "An old friend? "

"Yes," Nicole snapped.

"Watch yourself, I'm not in any mood for your shit today Nicole," Billy warned.

"Well there's a surprise," She retorted.

Billy's eyes became slits and Nicole knew she was treading on dangerous ground.

"Hey, is everything ok in here?"

Wade appeared next to Nicole.

"Oh yeah, umm everything is fine," Nicole stammered. "Wade this is my brother's friend Billy. Billy this is my friend Wade."

Billy and Wade stared each other down. Nicole looked between them nervously.

"Wade would you mind grabbing me another drink. I'll be back in the living in a minute."

Wade drew his gaze from Billy to Nicole and then looked back at Billy.

"Yeah sure," he said, not taking his eyes off Billy as he left.

_Wade always was stupidly brave._

"I don't have time for this bullshit. When is your brother going to be back?"

"He should be back soon." Nicole ran her fingers through her hair and looked around Paul's room. "Look Billy, I have been trying really hard to get used to all of this. I want my brother in my life, and I will do anything for him."

Billy sniffed, knowing where this was going.

"But I just need you to promise that you're watching out for him."

"Jesus Christ," Billy grumbled, "I'm really sick of these talks. I take care of my boys like they're my own fucking blood, and Paul is no different, not that it is any of your damn business."

"So you put guns up to your family's heads?" Nicole asked bitterly.

Billy took a step forward and thrust out his finger at Nicole.

"Let me explain how things fucking work. When I don't get paid, the big guy above me doesn't get paid, and when the big guy doesn't get paid people die. I was saving all our fucking necks. Your brother just needed to learn a lesson."

"Pretty rough lesson don't you think," Nicole said softly.

Billy's jaw clenched.

"You know what, I am really fucking tired of this. Why don't you get off your high horse and look around honey, you're in no position to talk down to me, giving me a guilt trip about what I do. We're both in the sewer. Fuck, we're practically neighbors."

Nicole was taken aback. She opened her mouth but then closed it again.

Billy eyed her sharply. "I got other shit to do. Tell your brother to call me when he's done fucking around."

He left without waiting for a reply.

Wade left shortly after Billy. He said he had more driving to do, that he was on his way to Florida and just stopped by to see how Nicole was doing. Nicole was sad to see him go, but they promised to stay in touch.

Nicole sighed and curled up on the sofa for a quiet night at home. Paul was out with the guys, Tina was sick with the flu, and Jenn and Marcy were both working in the morning.

Nicole awoke with a start. The TV cast an eerie light on the living room. She had fallen asleep somewhere in between an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and a diet pill infomercial. She was trying to figure out what had jerked her out of her sleep when she heard a loud pounding at the door.

"Open the damn door Nicole," came Billy's gruff voice.

Nicole jumped off the sofa and hurried to the hallway. The pounding came again.

"Open this fucking door NOW!"

Nicole yanked the door open. "What the hell is going on?"

She had to stifle a scream. Billy and Bodie were supporting a man she didn't recognize, and he was covered in blood. Paul was standing in the back, looking pale and shaken.

"What happened?"

"Get the fuck out of the way!"

Billy tried to shove his way through.

"Has he been shot? This isn't a hospital Darley. This boy needs serious medical attention!" Nicole shouted hysterically.

"No, he needs to lay down and you need to get the fuck out of the way!" Billy bellowed back at her.

Nicole stepped back and let the men through. The injured man groaned in pain. He looked like he had lost a lot of blood. Billy led him to the couch.

"Come on Joe, almost there."

Joe moaned in pain as he gingerly laid back on the sofa.

Nicole turned to Paul and Bodie. "What the hell happened?"

"He got shot, the rest of it doesn't concern you," Bodie answered coolly.

"Doesn't concern me? There's a guy bleeding to death in my living room!"

Joe looked up, wide eyed.

"To death? It's just a fucking shoulder wound," he said, trying to convince himself more than anyone else.

Billy turned to Nicole, looking livid.

"If you are so concerned with him bleeding to death than why don't you quit asking questions and fucking do something useful!"

"I'm not a fucking doctor! What do you want me to do, put a band-aid on it?"

Billy threw his hands in the air in frustration and stormed out of the room. Nicole looked between the other three men in confusion. Then came the sounds of slamming cabinets, Billy was rooting through her bathroom. He came back holding a bottle of aspirin, towels, and a pair of tweezers. He ripped the top off the aspirin and shook out a couple.

"Woah woah! Don't give him those!"

Nicole blocked Billy's outstretched hand.

"What, you fucking want him to suffer?"

"Aspirin's not a pain killer, it's a blood thinner. He'll just bleed out faster," Nicole explained, taking the bottle from his hand. Her eyes moved to the tweezers in his hand and she shook her head, "And we can't take that bullet out either."

"What?" Billy snarled. "What the fuck do you mean we can't take it out. It's gotta come out."

"No, we can't," Nicole tried to explain calmly, "the bullet left the gun so fast and so hot that when it hit him it cauterized the area around it. Taking it out could cause more damage."

"Then what do you suggest? Huh?"

Nicole looked at Joe. His eyes were closed tightly and he was pressing his hand into his chest, trying to stop the bleeding.

"We can wash the wound and wrap it. Hopefully it didn't hit a major artery and he'll be fine, but he really should see a doctor."

"Not an option. We came here to avoid the cops, going to the hospital will just attract their attention," Bodie cut in before Billy had a chance to start yelling again.

Nicole shook her head as if she didn't hear him correctly.

"Wait, you came here to shake off the police?"

"Yeah, they already know all of our places. They won't think to look for us here."

"That's just fucking great."

"Now's not the time Nic," Paul warned. It was the first sentence he'd spoken all night.

Nicole took a deep breath. She knew he was right.

"Alright. I'm gonna go get some hot water and rubbing alcohol. Keep some pressure on his shoulder."

Nicole tried her best to clean and dress Joe's wound, but it grew increasingly harder every time she came near him with the rubbing alcohol.

"OW! Fucking watch it!"

Nicole huffed. "If you would just sit still for a second this would all be over with."

She dabbed the cotton ball on his shoulder and he jerked away again.

"Would you stop being such a baby and just sit still!"

"Don't fucking call me a baby!"

"Then stop acting like one!"

"I'm not-"

"Both of you shut the fuck up!" Billy barked, aggravated. "Joe sit still or I'll make you sit still."

Joe shut his mouth and let Nicole clean and bandage him.

"How's it looking?" Bodie asked.

Nicole sighed. "It looks like it didn't hit any major blood vessels, and he feels well enough to complain, so he'll live."

Billy nodded his head. "Alright Bodie, go get the rest of the guys and see what you can find out. Paul, see if you can dig up some pain killers. I've got to make some calls." Billy excused himself.

Nicole got Joe some water, something to eat, and handed him the television remote.

"I'm going to go put this stuff away. You want anything else?"

Joe shook his head and continued wolfing down his sandwich.

Nicole threw the bloodied towels in the laundry room before heading to the bathroom with the rubbing alcohol, aspirin, and tweezers. She opened the door and jumped in surprise when she found Billy shirtless.

"I'm sorry!"

She quickly looked down and shut the door. She stood outside the door for a moment before realizing what she just saw. She reopened the door.

"Fucking christ woman get out!"

"What happened to your side?"

Over his left ribs was a huge gash.

"Nothing, now leave."

Nicole pursed her lips in annoyance.

"If you don't clean it, it could get infected and scar."

"Does it look like I give a shit about scars?"

Nicole ignored him and reached under the cabinet, grabbed a wash cloth, and ran it under the faucet. She then bent down and began carefully cleaning off his side. Billy was irritated, but he didn't stop her. Nicole grabbed the rubbing alcohol and poured some into the cloth. She looked up nervously at Billy before patting it on. He balled his hands into fists but didn't move. She found some fresh gauze and bandaged him up. Billy mumbled a thanks and grabbed his shirt. Nicole leaned against the counter as he pulled it over his head.

"Is there something you need Sis?"

"I thought you were going to look out for my brother, keep him safe-"

"Well then I guess it's good thing that it's my brother bleeding on the sofa," Billy snapped.

Nicole felt like kicking herself. She didn't like Billy, but she knew how it felt to see your younger brother scared, shaken, and hurt. Billy stormed out of the bathroom and a minute later she heard the front door slam.

_Fuck_. Nicole mentally cursed herself.

She walked back out into the hallway and called to Joe.

"You still ok in there?"

"No I'm great, I've just been fucking shot," he replied sarcastically.

_Well at least he has his sense of humor._

"Well when you start bleeding out of your ears and mouth call me."

Nicole headed for the front door.

"Har har har," Joe shouted after her.

Billy was sitting on the front steps smoking when Nicole opened the door. He looked back at the sound of the door closing, and when he saw Nicole he shook his head, exhaling smoke in the process.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "I didn't know Joe was your brother."

"You need to learn to keep your damn mouth shut," he spat.

Nicole sat down next to him.

"It's hard keeping my mouth shut with my foot in it all the time."

Billy smirked. "Won't argue there."

"First time for everything I suppose," Nicole joked, playfully nudging him with her elbow.

Billy turned to look at her and for a second Nicole was scared she'd crossed the line, but he cracked a small smile and turned back.

"You know he's going to be ok right?"

Billy furrowed his brow.

"Your brother. In fact he might be better off this way."

Billy looked amused. "Oh yeah, how so?"

"What girl can resist the 'wanna check out my bullet wound' line?"

He chuckled, it was deep and resounded in his chest.

But, the small moment of peace was interrupted by a large, imposing man.

"Well well well, what do we have here Billy boy?"

Billy's face stiffened, and his smirk became a scowl. Nicole looked on in confusion.

"Go inside," Billy grunted.

She studied him for a moment before getting up slowly.

"Oh don't go because of me sweetie pie," the man taunted.

Nicole shuttered in disgust. He was heavy set with squinty eyes hidden behind coke rim glasses, and looked greasier than fast food fries.

Only seconds after the front door clicked close and Joe was calling to Nicole.

"You'll be happy to know my ears and mouth are blood free."

Nicole rolled her eyes and walked into the living room.

"I'm ecstatic," she said dryly.

Joe grinned.

"I bet you are. So how'd talking to Billy go?"

"I'm still alive so I think it went well, but some big goon is out there now."

Joe suddenly became very serious.

"What'd he look like?"

Nicole didn't like the sound of that.

"Big, sweaty, Boston accent, creep..."

Joe groaned.

"Why? Who is that?"

He was pressing his fingers into his eyes.

"That's Bones."

"Bones? Who's Bones?"

Joe opened his eyes and gave Nicole a patronizing look.

"He's the guy even Billy doesn't talk back to."

Nicole nodded. "So he's the big man in charge?"

Joe snorted. "Literally and figuratively."

The front door slammed and Joe sat up, craning his neck to see who it was. But it was unnecessary because Billy stormed into the room.

"I gotta go handle some shit. Stay here and don't fucken move. If the guys come back tell them to head out to the corners. Our old man isn't giving us any slack."

Nicole cocked her head to the side, a realization dawning on her.

"Wait...old man. That guy was your dad?"

Billy turned to face her, looking murderous.

"Just keep your fucking mouth shut and make sure he doesn't die." He jutted his thumb in Joe's direction.

The front door slammed shut and Nicole turned to face Joe.

"Well, I see charm is a genetic trait in your family."

Joe just smirked.


	9. Chapter 9

YAY new chapter dance! I promise I am trying to get chapters out sooner, unfortunately this summer has been super busy (aka I got a job). But I already have a good chunk of the next chapter done (which I am SUPER excited about) so here's hoping I get back on the once a week bandwagon. Anywho, enjoy and thanks for reading! :)

* * *

Nicole was flipping pancakes in the kitchen when Joe woke up.

"Ugh," he groaned in pain.

Paul had managed to find some pain killers, from where Nicole didn't want to know, but Joe still had a bullet lodged in his shoulder and he made sure to let everyone know.

"I've slept on floors more comfortable than your couch," he called from the other room.

Nicole shook her head and stacked some pancakes on a plate before grabbing some orange juice from the fridge. She stood in the door frame in between the kitchen and living room. Joe perked up at the site of the plate in her hand.

"Those for me?"

"I don't know. Are you going to insult them like my you do my furniture?"

"Are they made of bricks like your couch is?"

"No, they're made of ungratefulness, like your attitude."

Joe grinned and took the offered plate. Nicole plopped down in a chair and turned on the TV. She flipped channels until she found the locals news. Shots of downtown were rolling across the screen accompanied by the anchorman's voiceover.

"Police suspect that a late night shooting that left two men dead and one in critical condition may have been gang related. They are not releasing the victim's names, but have said that they are members of the known "B Street" gang. There are no suspects at this time, but police are urging anyone with information to come forward. All tips are completely confidential." The newsman segued into a story about a local high school's fundraiser.

Nicole looked pointedly at Joe. He was shoving pancakes in his mouth like he was starving. He stopped when he saw her staring at him.

"Somfing wong?" He asked through a mouthful of pancake.

"What happened last night?" She asked suspiciously.

He swallowed before answering.

"Billy warned me you'd be snoopy. He told me not to tell you anything. Sorry Nic."

"Is that right? What else did Billy tell you?"

"Well, he told me that you have an ass tighter than the Hoover dam."

Nicole choked on her orange juice.

"He what?"

"Yeah, and he also told me how you used to be a junkie."

"Of course he did," she said bitingly.

"Why do you give him such a hard time? He's not such a bad guy."

"Yeah well, we can agree to disagree on that."

Paul bumbled into the living room.

"What smells so good?" He yawned.

"Morning sleeping beauty. There are pancakes in the kitchen."

The three of them sat around the living room enjoying their breakfast and watching the news when the front door opened. Billy and what Nicole guessed was his entire crew of seven men strode in, looking worse for wear.

"Have you guys been out all night?" She asked.

"What's it fucking look like?" Billy snapped.

Baggy groaned. "Isn't it a little early for you two to start fighting already." He sank down into a chair. "Do you have any coffee Sis?"

"Yeah, I'll put on a pot. Do you guys want some breakfast too?"

She took their collective grumbles to mean yes and went about making enough pancakes to feed a small army and a very large pot of coffee.

The living room was surprisingly quiet considering eleven people were jammed inside. Most of the guys sat on the floor and Nicole stood in the doorway surveying the scene. She was surprised at how normal everyone seemed. The guys chatted idly in between inhaling stacks of pancakes and made crude, though humorous comments about the blonde newscaster. It was like some warped version of the Brady Bunch.

"Look at those lips, I bet she can suck a nail out of a wall."

"You know she's gotta be a freak in the bed. The straight laced ones always are."

"Too bad she's behind a desk. I bet she's got an ass-"

"Tighter than the Hoover Dam?" Nicole interrupted Heco.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Billy's head jerk. He stared at her and then at Joe, squinting his eyes as he put two and two together. Joe's eyes widened and he stared up at Billy guiltily.

"Exactly," Heco laughed. "You know Sis, you're not half bad."

"You're only saying that because I fed you, but thanks anyway."

Nicole excused herself to the kitchen. Feeding ten hungry men had left it looking like a bomb went off. She had just dipped her hands in the sink when she heard heavy footsteps.

"So you and Joe have a nice little talk?"

Nicole turned to face Billy and raised her eyebrows questioningly. "I don't know what you're talking about." She grinned mischievously.

"I bet you don't." He leaned against the countertop, crossing his arms over his chest. "So did you give him the third degree?"

"Believe it or not, I let him off easy."

"I find that hard to believe."

He looked worn out. His eyes were red and had bags under them, and his face seemed to have aged over night.

"You look like you've had a rough night."

"You caught that huh?" He had lost some of the anger from earlier, but his voice still held a tone of annoyance.

"I have a keen sense of perception, but I just wanted to make sure everything was ok. Saw a report on the news about a shooting, sounded pretty bad."

He rubbed his hand across his forehead. "Great, just fucking great. The news?" He looked exasperated.

"They said they didn't have any suspects, but that two men were dead and one was in the hospital and that they were part of some gang called B Stre-."

Billy slammed his fist into the counter causing Nicole to jump back in surprise.

"Damnit!" He shouted.

Nicole could hear the guys in the other room fall silent. She ran her hand through her hair nervously.

"Is everything ok in here?" Bodie apprehensively entered the kitchen, followed by Paul and Baggy.

Billy sniffed, a habit Nicole noticed he had whenever he was upset.

"Bodie take Heco and Tommy and do some cleanup." He glanced sideways at Nicole, " You know what I mean. Everyone else is on patrol. I've got a fat fuck to go see."

The guys took their marching orders without complaint, but it was obvious they were not happy about it. One by one they filed out the door mumbling their thanks to Nicole and well wishes to Joe. Billy was the last to leave besides Paul who ducked into his room to change into fresh clothes.

"Nic can you watch Joe today?"

She was taken aback by the fact that Billy was asking her to do something and not just barking orders, that and that he used her name instead of calling her "Sis".

"Yeah, but I have to be at work by 3:00."

"Fine, I'll be back to pick him up by then."

Joe milked his injury for all it was worth. He stayed stretched out on the couch all day, enjoying all the food he could eat and cable television, both of which his apartment was seriously lacking. Nicole felt like she spent half the day going to and from the kitchen.

_This kid's a fucking garbage disposal,_ she thought as she made him his fifth turkey sandwich.

"Here, and don't forget to chew this time." She set the plate on his stomach.

"You're the best."

"Well thanks I guess."

Nicole leaned back in one of the chairs. Joe was watching some reality show with people screaming and fighting each other.

"Hey what's this?" He grabbed her photo album from beside the couch. It must have been left there from when Wade was over.

"It's nothing." She made a move to take it back from him, but he pulled it away.

"Nothing? It looks like a photo album?"

Nicole moved to take it again, but Joe moved it out of her reach.

"What, you got embarrassing baby pictures or something?"

Before she could stop him he started flipping through all the pictures. He made sarcastic "Awws" at her baby photos and stopped to laugh at all her awkward phase photos, and then he got to her high school pictures.

"You look like you were a lot more fun in high school."

"I probably was," she replied dryly

"What happened?" He was just playing around with her, but Nicole answered bluntly.

"I stopped shooting up."

"Oh yeah, maybe you should start up again." He continued flipping through the pages.

"I tried that, it didn't go over too well."

"I heard," he replied, not bothering to look up.

"Of course you did."

He stopped when he got to a certain picture.

"Ow ow, looking good!"

Nicole tried to grab the album out of his hand once more but he held it back.

"Well at least let me see what picture it is." She exclaimed, exasperated.

He turned it to face her. It was a picture of her at some concert wearing the miniest of mini skirts and something that barely passed as a shirt. She had on what she used to refer to as her "slut stomping boots" which were black, sparkly, three inch high boots that came to just below her knee. Her hair was whirled into two buns on top of her head and she had the biggest grin on her face.

Nicole turned a deep shade of red.

"I went through a phase."

She checked her phone, trying to change subjects.

"Shouldn't your brother be here? I have to leave for work soon."

But Joe couldn't be diverted.

"What, a hooker a phase?

"No!" Nicole shot back, offended.

"Do you still have those clothes? I bet you kept some."

"Alright that's enough." She made one last desperate attempt to grab the book from him.

He yanked it out of grasp and held it tauntingly.

"Oh come on, I'm just messing with you."

But Nicole wasn't giving up.

"Just give it back, you had your fun."

She made grab for it and finally landed a hand around the binding just as the front door swung open. She heard the familiar heavy footsteps.

"Hey Billy, come take a look at this."

Joe took advantage of Nicole's distraction and tugged the book back.

"What?"

Billy sounded agitated, which probably meant the talk with Bones didn't go well.

Joe motioned for Billy to come over to him. He flipped through the photo album.

"Joe," Nicole warned.

But Joe kept flipping until he came to the page with the picture on it.

"Looks like she wasn't always a prude," Joe laughed.

"I'm standing right here you know."

For a split second Nicole thought she saw Billy's mouth twitch into a small grin, but it was gone before she could be sure.

He looked up at her. "Nice boots."

She turned red again and grabbed the book from Joe, snapping it closed.

"If you two are done, I have to get ready for work."

She stomped off to her room, shoving the photo album under her bed where no one else could find it. She slipped on her frilly blue waitress dress and grabbed the apron and hat from her bureau. Billy was leading Joe out the front door when she emerged from her room. Joe snickered at the site of her dress.

"Where the fuck do you work, Mayberry?"

"Trust me this dress was not my choice," she huffed, grabbing her keys off the table. "Now come on, I'm already running late."

"Calm down, we can take you," Joe offered.

Nicole shook her head. She still remembered the last time Billy gave her a ride.

"No it's fine. I can walk."

Billy looked at her.

"You walk to work?"

"Yes. It's not far, and I don't feel like paying for bus fare all the time."

"You walk home at night?"

"Yes." She was starting to get testy.

"Isn't it a little dangerous out there?"

_It's a little dangerous in here._

"I'm fine. I have pepper spray."

Billy chuckled and Nicole couldn't help notice that it wasn't a lighthearted chuckle but carried a kind of morbid tone.

"Come on, we'll give you a ride," he shook his head still finding some sort of amusement out of the fact that she carried pepper spray, and pulled out a cigarette from his pack.

"Fine," Nicole reluctantly agreed.

She was three hours into her shift when a familiar face walked into the restaurant.

"Tina, what are you doing here? Not that I am not happy to see you."

The restaurant was dead so Nicole motioned her friend to come sit at a table with her.

"You want something to eat?"

"No, I'm ok. I was just stopping by to see how you were doing."

"What do you mean?"

Tina looked at her like she was crazy.

"Well from what I hear you had a pretty wild night."

"Oh that! Yeah things were kind of messy. Do you know what happened? No one really tells me anything."

"Well Tommy doesn't tell me much either, but from what he did say it was some kind of territory thing. You know after that failed stabbing with Paul, B Street has been trying to pull a lot of stuff to get more corners."

"Wait that guy who pulled the knife on Paul was doing it for some kind of stupid gang thing?"

"Pretty much, but I wouldn't go around saying 'stupid gang thing' to any of the guys."

"So what's going to happen now?" Nicole could feel the worry slowly rising up inside of her.

"Tommy said that they think they might have scared them off, at least for now. Two of their guys died and one was hurt pretty badly, so they'll be playing without a full team so to speak."

_Leave it to Tina to make a shootout sound like a hockey game._

"He said the guys were more worried about dealing with Bones. He's pissed about all the attention the incident got, you know with the news and everything."

"Oh," Nicole was quiet for a moment. "Have you ever met Bones?"

"Once. Not an experience I want to repeat again."

"Me neither. He stopped by last night."

"How was everything, with last night and all?"

"It was fine I guess, as fine as it could be anyway. Joe's alright. His arm was healed up enough for him to complain about his sleeping arrangements this morning, and Billy and I actually held a conversation that didn't involve him yelling or trying to kill me, so that was a plus. Although this morning Joe found one of my old photo albums and he and Billy found one of the pictures _very_ amusing."

Tina raised her eyebrows. "Oh really. How so?"

"It was just some stupid picture from high school. It was while I was dating my ex and I had this whole different persona. I even went by the name Nikki for awhile, and Nikki didn't wear a lot of clothes. It was right after my grandma died and Paul and I went back to living with our mom. I guess I was sort of rebelling or some shit."

Tina stifled her laugh. "Nikki?"

"Yeah, it was stupid. My ex used to call me 'Darling Nikki' like the song by Prince. I even used to do this little striptease for him to the song."

Tina couldn't hold back anymore, she burst out in a fit of giggles. "Wait, you never told me about this ex, all I ever heard about was that guy Court, your dealer that you dated."

"Well they're the same person. I just never told you that story, for obvious reasons. But my nickname was nowhere near as bad as his. People used to call him Bear."

Tina was sent into fits again. "What? Why?"

"Because he was about as nice as one."

Tina continued laughing like it was the funniest thing she had ever heard.

"You would think you'd be used to weird nicknames: Bodie, Spink, Dog, Baggy."

"You'd think, but they still get me." She dabbed her finger under her eyes. "Well hey, I gotta get back to the store. I just wanted to stop in and see for myself that you survived." She got up to leave but stopped when she remembered something. "Hey, you're still planning on helping me get ready for the Halloween party next week right?"

Nicole groaned inwardly. She had completely forgotten she promised to help Tina get ready for her party. Tina always went all out for her parties, and she threw one whenever she had an occasion to, and sometimes even when she didn't.

"Yeah, when do you need me?"

"You wanna come over around 1:00 PM or so and help me set up?"

"Sure."

"Alright, well I'll see you Saturday"

"See you later T."

Paul came home a little after midnight. Nicole had been waiting for over an hour when he finally walked through the door. She could hear his feet dragging along the floor. It had clearly been a long day. He trudged into the living room where Nicole looked up at him expectantly.

"You want some coffee?"

He shook his head and sunk back into the couch next to her, breathing a sigh of relief as he settled in.

"How's Joe?"

"He's ok. Billy picked him up before I left for work."

Paul just nodded and closed his eyes as he leaned his head back against the couch.

Nicole continued carefully. "I'm not going to ask you what happened-"

"Good."

"Cause I know you wouldn't tell me anyway, but I just want to know if you're going to be ok."

Paul was silent. Nicole figured he was ignoring her, and just as she was getting ready to say something else, he spoke.

"Everything has been taken care of."

Nicole would have preferred the silence to that answer. She knew what that usually meant. It meant that somewhere tonight someone was going to be getting a late night phone call from the hospital or worse yet the morgue. It meant that Billy and all his friends spent the day threatening anyone within eyesight of their gun show last night, making sure there would be no witnesses telling their story to the news or the police. And worst of all it meant that Paul was no longer her innocent baby brother.


	10. Chapter 10

New chapter, YAY! I've been soooo excited about writing this chapter so I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I'd also like to give HUGE thanks to everyone who has given me feedback and support. It really makes me feel good to know that people are enjoying reading my story. So THANK YOU! :)

* * *

"You sure you don't want to come to the party tonight?" Nicole asked her brother one more time.

"No," he called back.

She walked into the living room where her brother was sprawled out on the sofa with the remote in one hand and a bowl of candy in the other.

"Don't eat all of that. If you're going to be here you're going to have to pass out the candy."

He looked up at her and immediately burst out laughing.

"Is that your costume?"

"What? You don't like it?" Nicole hadn't felt like going out to buy a costume so she came up with one at home. She'd taken an old white bed sheet and pinned it around her like a toga. Granted it wasn't the cutest costume, but it was a costume none the less.

"Are you going as Caesar?"

"It's the only thing I could think of last minute. You should be happy I'm not wearing some slutty school girl uniform like every other girl out tonight."

"That reminds me, I'm going out tonight so I'll just leave the candy on the porch."

"Where are you going?"

"Out with Joe, we're picking up girls in slutty school girl uniforms." He grinned devilishly and Nicole threw a pillow at his head.

Tina swung by to pick Nicole up on her way home from the store. The last thing Nicole wanted to do was ride the bus dressed in a toga.

"Is that your costume?" Tina asked as nicely as she could.

"What? I didn't really have time to go out and get one. A costume is a costume, and that's all that matters."

Tina shrugged her shoulders. "If you say so."

Nicole helped Tina rearrange furniture, set out drinks, and put up "spooky" decorations. By the time they were done her apartment looked unrecognizable.

"The dry ice is a nice touch," Nicole commented. It created a white fog that was coating the floor of the apartment.

"Thanks. I got the idea from my little cousin's school Halloween party. They put the dry ice in punch and it smokes like a witches brew."

"Cute."

"Speaking of cute, we better go get ready before people start arriving. Jenn and Marcy said they would be here at 7:00."

"What do you mean we? I'm already in costume." She shooed her. "Go get ready, I'll answer the door."

"You know there is no way I am letting you wear that frumpy toga. I invited some hot single men."

"I hope by hot single men you aren't referring to your brother and his friends, because they're already over at my apartment all the time. Hell, Bodie walked in on me in the shower about a week ago."

Tina's jaw dropped. "What did you do?"

"I didn't have to do anything. He ran out so fast I hardly had time to react. It was kind of insulting actually," she joked.

"Well you won't have that problem tonight, I promise."

Nicole rolled her eyes, but followed Tina nonetheless.

Tina's costume was already laid out on her bed. She was going dressed as Pocahontas or at least the Disney version of Pocahontas. It was cute and surprisingly low key. However, the outfit she pulled out for Nicole was anything but low key. It was a naughty nurse costume, complete with a bustier and an outrageously short skirt.

"I can't wear that!" She exclaimed. "My coochie will be hanging out!"

"It will not. You can wear some cute underwear. Come on Nic, you need a man."

"I have enough men right now, in fact I think I have too many."

Tina huffed, but continued rustling through her closet. She stepped back, analyzing the situation.

"I have an idea. What if we keep the nurse thing, but go with a vintage, 1940's kind of look? You know, red lipstick, cute updo, stockings with a seam running down the back of your leg."

"What about the dress?"

"Oh you can just wear a simple white, button down pencil dress. It'll be great."

Nicole couldn't deny that Tina was right. She looked a lot better without the toga. Tina helped her with her hair; throwing it up into a loose bun with some stray curls falling delicately out topped with the nurse's hat from the other costume. Nicole did her own make up, a simple red lip and winged out eyeliner. Tina slipped on her own dress and was snapping her necklace into place when Nicole came out of the bathroom.

"Almost perfect, just one more thing." She pulled out a pair of white, peep toe heels.

Nicole took them, knowing it was useless to fight it.

When Tina was finished with her own costume Nicole was pretty sure she was the best looking Pocahontas she had ever seen.

"Hey, where are you guys?" Marcy's voice came from the hallway.

"We're back here," Tina called back.

Jenn and Marcy rode together and were already in costume when they arrived. Marcy ran up and gave Nicole and Tina hugs. She was dressed as a flapper girl. Her short brown hair was styled in finger waves and several long strands of beads hung around her neck. Jenn however hung back in the doorway, and when Nicole finally noticed her she almost died. She was leaning up against the door frame swinging a whistle in a high cut, one piece red bathing suit with a pair of aviator sunglasses. When she noticed Tina and Nicole's reactions to her costume she cracked a smile.

"There a problem here ladies?" She asked in an authoritative tone.

Nicole held her sides as she doubled over laughing. Jenn finally broke character and laughed along with everyone else.

"Isn't it great? I had it lying around from when I used to be a lifeguard."

"You look like you should be on Baywatch!" Tina laughed.

Guests arrived in staggered intervals. Most of the people that Tina was close friends with showed up early, but as the night wore on more people she invited out of general politeness showed up. Nicole recognized most of the people from Tina's birthday party, but there were a few she had never seen before and some of them were very attractive.

"Hey T," she pulled Tina over to the kitchen area, "who's the guy in the jeans and t-shirt?"

Tina glanced over to where Nicole was looking.

"Oh that's Grayson." She gave her friend a knowing look. "Cute isn't he."

He was about average height, slightly lanky, with a mop of fine, light brown hair that barely dusted his ears. He had a very boy next door look to him, and Nicole liked that. He seemed safe and she liked _that_ even more.

"You want me to introduce you to him?"

"Is that weird?"

Tina gave her friend an incredulous look. "You really haven't dated in a long time have you?" She led the way over to where Grayson was chatting with two other guys, one was a pirate the other was wearing a Chippendale's uniform. "Hey guys, how's it going?"

They all gave the generic responses of "great", "awesome", or some other form of pleasantry.

"Glad to hear it. This is my friend Nicole. Nicole this is Grayson, Corey, and Luis."

"Nice to meet you." Nicole smiled, hoping she wasn't being awkward, but the guys smiled back and returned her greeting.

After a few minutes of general chit chat, led mostly by Tina the social butterfly, Nicole leaned over to talk to Grayson.

"Nice costume. Let me guess, you're a bored college student."

Grayson held up one finger, telling her to hold on as he pulled out a pair of round, wire rim glasses. He slid them on and held his hands up as if to say "ta-da". Nicole laughed and shrugged, not getting it.

"I'm John Lennon." He grinned

"Clever," she giggled.

"So how long have you known Tina?"

"About a year, we met right after I moved here from Detroit."

"Wow, Detroit. So you moved from one shithole to another."

Nicole laughed. "Pretty much. But what about you, I mean what's a guy like you doing in a place like this?"

"Born and bred sister. I've been here my whole life. In fact, me and Tina went to elementary school together."

"Yeah, he used to push me down on the playground. Luckily he got nicer in high school."

"More like cuter. She had such a crush on me; she used to chase me around all day."

Tina smacked him on the back of the head. "You wish. As I remember it was you who did the chasing. That is until my big brother tracked you down and put your head into a locker."

He grimaced a little. "Yeah, your brother never did like me."

Nicole leaned over close to his ear, "well there's something we have in common."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really? A pretty girl like you is on a guy like that's shit list?"

_Several guys like that actually._

Nicole shrugged her shoulders. "It's a _long_ story."

He nodded and she saw his eyes flick towards the door.

"Uh oh, speak of the devil and it looks like he brought his band of merry men too."

Nicole turned to see Tommy walk in with Billy and Spink along with some girl dressed in a skimpy red devil costume.

Tina mumbled next to Nicole. "That's Gina. I can't stand her. I can't believe they brought her."

"Who is she?"

"Some bitch who thinks she's better than everyone else because she hangs out with big, scary men and gets paid to take her clothes off."

"She thinks she's better than people because she's a stripper?"

Tina laughed. "No, I mean she's part of some online thing, like naked modeling shit."

"I like her already."

Billy, Spink, and Tommy slipped into the kitchen to grab a few beers.

Tommy cracked the top off of his. "You picked a popular date this evening. Did you see all the heads turning when you walked in with Gina?"

Billy smirked and sipped his beer. "Three feet of fabric never looked so good."

"Cheers to that," Tommy said as he clinked his bottle against the other two men's.

Spink nodded towards the living area. "She's not the only one turning heads. You see Nicole?"

Billy glanced at her. "Just wait till Baggy gets here. His head will probably snap right off."

"So Grayson, tell me about yourself?" Nicole pulled his attention away from the four newcomers.

"Well I like long walks on the beach and getting caught in the rain. I'm studying to become a high school math teacher and my favorite color is blue."

Nicole smiled. She liked his playful sense of humor.

"And what about you?"

"Well in between law school and med school I work as a waitress and take care of my younger brother. Oh and my favorite color is green."

"Law school and med school, you're such a slacker," he teased.

"What about you? What kind of jerk wants to be a math teacher?"

He held his hands over his heart and gave her a pained look. "Ouch, you cut me deep."

Nicole giggled, but before she could respond she was interrupted by Billy who appeared behind her.

"So where's Paul at?" He asked. He had one arm draped around Gina and his free hand was holding a beer.

"He's out with Joe. I believe he said they were picking up girls in skanky costumes." Nicole had to force herself not look at Gina when she said the last bit, but in the end it didn't matter because Tina said what Nicole was thinking.

"It must run in the family."

Nicole tried not to spit her drink out.

Gina's eyes narrowed and she stared down Tina.

"Excuse me?" She hissed.

"I said-" but Tina was cut off by her brother yanking her away by the elbow and muttering furiously in her ear.

Nicole was left with Grayson, Spink, Billy, and a pissed off Gina.

"Well, I think I could use another drink. Grayson?"

He looked down at his practically full beer. "You know, me too."

She led the way and once they escaped to the safety of the kitchen they both burst into peals of laughter.

"Did you see her face?" Grayson's own face was turning a vibrant shade of red he was laughing so hard.

"I'm sad Tommy pulled her away! Can you imagine a Tina/Gina throw down?"

Grayson was sent into another wave of laughter.

"I need another drink. This night is going to be awesome, I can already tell." Nicole grabbed a beer from the fridge.

Baggy, Bodie, and Dog walked in shortly after Nicole and Grayson left for the kitchen. Spink waved them over.

Billy and Gina were in the corner. Gina was talking animatedly about how angry she was and how she couldn't believe the nerve of some women and that Tina was just jealous. Meanwhile Billy was simply nodding his head every now and then in between swigs of beer. He was perfectly indifferent to the whole situation.

"Why are you assholes here so late?" Spink greeted the three men.

"We had to drop Heco off under the bridge and pick Bodie's ass up." Baggy jabbed his thumb at Bodie.

"Where's Jamie?"

"Doing shit with his chick or something, I don't know."

"That's fucking weak. But you guys missed some funny shit man. Earlier Tommy's lil sis almost got into it with Gina, called her a skank. Funny ass shit."

"Maybe they'll get into it again later, hot chick fight," Dog joked.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't let Tommy hear you talking about his sister like that."

"Whatever man, hey where's the beer?"

"Kitchen's that way," Spink pointed, "Oh hey Baggy, you gotta go check out Nicole tonight man. She's in there now with some scrawny fucker."

"Yeah? Well in that case, you guys want some beer? I'll get it." He grinned as he made his way to the kitchen.

"Sis!" Baggy surprised Nicole by coming up behind her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Hey how's it going? Nice costume. Where's your brother?" Nicole opened her mouth to speak but he continued on. "Speaking of which, do you think your brother would want you hanging out with this punk? Do you even know this kid?" He turned his attention to Grayson. "Get lost string bean."

Nicole's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Baggy!"

"What?" He asked innocently. Grayson still stood there looking confused. "I said get lost," Baggy barked. "Or am I gonna have to call her big brother up and get his ass down here?"

Grayson shook his head and scurried out of the kitchen amidst Nicole's protests that he should stay.

"I can't believe you just did that! First of all, I'm older than Paul. Second of all, you're going to kill my dating life if you threaten to call my brother whenever I talk to a guy."

"Whatever, that kid was a coward anyway. He should have stood up for himself. Do you wanna date some spineless loser?"

Nicole glared up at Baggy.

"I didn't think so. Now come rejoin the party. I'll make sure no more creeps bother you."

She elbowed him in the ribs, but she had to admit she was amused.

Tina was back out in the living room and was receiving some pretty harsh glares from Gina. Baggy greeted her with a hug.

"I heard you almost laid down the law with Gina." He lowered his voice, "personally I can't stand her." He held his fist out for her to bump.

Tina laughed and touched her knuckles to his. "Thanks Bags. Glad to know someone's got my back." She eyed her brother with contempt.

"Don't be mad at him. He was probably doing it for Billy's sake. He's had a short fuse lately."

"Lately?" Nicole raised her eyebrows.

"Come on, this is a party. Let's not get started on all this shit." Dog intervened, holding his arm out to call peace.

"Did I hear someone say party?" Marcy appeared at Baggy's elbow. She squeezed her way into the group.

"Hey Marcy. You remember Baggy from my birthday right? Well this is Spink and Dog." Marcy gave Tina a curious look and she added "They're all friends of Tommy's"

Surprisingly the six of them made for an interesting group. Dog and Spink were reliving, what Nicole figured were extremely censored, stories from the street with Tina chiming in every so often, while Baggy was trying his best to flirt with Marcy. As time went on their group got louder and eventually Jenn and a few other people joined in, making for a very lively conversation.

Nicole flung her head back and laughed as Tina recalled the time she was in high school and got so drunk that she walked into her neighbor's house instead of her own.

"I almost pissed myself when he came around the corner with a baseball bat!" She practically yelled.

Nicole held onto Jenn's shoulder for support as she laughed. When she looked up she noticed their group had garnered some unwanted attention. Gina had a sour look on her face as she watched Tina reenact her escape from the neighbor's house to the enthralled audience. Nicole could see the wheels turning in her head. She was jealous of the attention Tina was getting. The next thing she knew Gina was beside her, followed by Bodie, Tommy, and Billy.

As Tina finished up her story Gina quickly made a grab for everyone's attention.

"Baggy, Dog, Spink!" She exclaimed. "When did you guys get here?"

Her voice was loud and high pitched, like the annoying, ditzy girls Nicole remembered in high school.

"Is that a new tattoo?" She pointed to Baggy's neck.

"No I've had it for-"

"That's so cool. You know I've been thinking about getting one." She looked around, as if to make sure everyone was watching her. "A lot of people have said that it would open a lot more doors for my modeling. You know give me that special something." She looked back at Billy, who Nicole couldn't help thinking looked rather annoyed. "What do you think babe?"

He shrugged his shoulders, clearly wanting the conversation to end.

But she continued on undeterred.

"I was think maybe something on my neck or like on my lower back. What do you think?" She lifted her dress up, exposing her itty bitty, red lace underwear.

Nicole exchanged knowing looks with more than a few people. Jenn simply rolled her eyes, but Tina seemed to be rather amused and gave her a look as if to say "can you believe this shit?"

Gina pointed to her lower back, right above her underwear.

"What about something like flowers…or oh something tribal like what Billy and you guys have!"

Nicole didn't even have to look to know that Tina's face was in her hand, and she was pretty sure she noticed Billy stiffen out of the corner of her eye.

"And now I am going to get yet another drink," Nicole tried to say it loud enough for Tina to hear. She knew that her friend would have plenty to say and she looked like if she didn't get it out soon she might explode.

"Yeah me too," she heard Billy's gruff voice from behind her.

Nicole stood there not knowing what to do for a minute, but eventually decided to follow him to the kitchen. Anything had to be better than standing there listening to Gina.

He opened the fridge door and grabbed two beers.

"I hope you have a ball gag at your apartment." She stated bluntly as he passed her a beer.

He looked at her for a moment before grinning. "You think duct tape will work?"

"I don't know. She might gnaw through it."

Billy clinked his bottle against hers before taking a sip.

"Why are you dating this girl when she clearly annoys the hell out of you?"

Billy raised his eyebrows. "Why do you care?"

Nicole studied him for a moment before shaking her head. "Just curious I guess."

She turned to rejoin the party, but Billy grabbed her by the elbow.

"Hold up. Your friend in there, the one that's talking to Baggy?"

"Marcy?"

"Yeah. You need to encourage that shit. Get Baggy off your back."

"What? What do you mean?"

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed how much he's over at your apartment and how he's always flirting with you. He thinks you're hot, and it's starting to piss off Paul. So spare us all some drama and hook him up with your friend."

Nicole rolled her eyes. "I'll see what I can do."

"Billy?" Gina's voice called from the next room, "Where'd you go babe?"

Billy scowled.

Nicole looked at him and smirked. "You're being summoned Darley."

He shook his head. "You better watch. If she comes in here and sees that I've been alone all this time with another girl it won't be pretty."

"I think I can take Fun-Time Barbie."

"I don't know. She's tougher than she looks and she fights dirty. I saw her pull a girl's extensions out once."

"Than I guess it's a good thing my hair is real."

Billy chuckled.

"There you are." Gina smiled when Billy emerged from the kitchen, but her grin faltered when she zeroed in on Nicole behind him. "What took you so long?" She wrapped her arm around him possessively.

"Just getting a beer with a friend."

Nicole snorted. "He's using the term friend _very_ loosely," she muttered under the scrutiny of Gina's jealous gaze. In the background she thought she heard Baggy groan in anticipation of another fight, but Billy just smirked.

"I thought we were getting along pretty well lately."

She smiled, surprised at his light hearted attitude. "Maybe so, but I think we're still a long way from being friends."

He thought for a moment. "Alright, how 'bout a truce, call it even." He held out his hand.

Nicole gave him a disbelieving look. She stepped closer to him and lowered her voice so the rest of the party couldn't hear her.

"You almost broke a car window with my head. I don't think a handshake will make us even."

Billy's good humor flickered for a second.

Tina was close enough to hear their conversation and could sense the tension rising from Billy. She quickly tried to diffuse the situation.

"Come on guys why don't we-"

"What, you wanna take a swing at me?" He sniffed.

Nicole backed away, sensing danger.

"Of course not. At least not while you have a glass bottle in your hand," she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Billy shoved the bottle into Gina's hand. She looked at him like he had just handed her something offensive and vile.

"Alright." He held his arms up as if to say "bring it".

"I'm not going to hit you," Nicole said, stunned.

By this time most the people around them had started to take notice and were watching their exchange intently.

"Why not? One hit and we call it even."

But she shook her head, smelling a trap.

"I can guarantee I've been hit harder, come on."

Nicole hesitated but shook her head again. "No way."

"You're really going to turn down the chance to hit me in the face, no consequences?"

She had to admit it was a tempting offer and she cocked her head to side, contemplating if she should really do it.

"You know you want to."

She pursed her lips and thought for a moment.

_Surely with all these people, these witnesses around…_

"Alright, as long as you promise not to hit me back."

"I won't fucking touch you, promise."

She shrugged and handed her beer to Tina, who was looking rather anxious.

"Just remember you told me I could do this," she said as she stepped forward.

Billy was a good half a foot taller than her even with heels on, and the closer she got to him the bigger and more intimidating he seemed, but it was too late to back out now.

_Here goes nothing._

She drew her hand back and slapped him across the face as hard as she could. The sound of her hand hitting his cheek resonated throughout the room and everyone suddenly got deathly quiet. Nicole stepped back, massaging her hand. She had to admit that it felt good, giving Billy Darley a good smack.

Billy rubbed his cheek.

"You hit pretty hard," he was shaking his head and grinning.

Nicole let out a relieved laugh as she took another step back towards Tina, but her relief wavered when Billy stepped forward, closing the gap. His smile was gone and his eyes lost all their humor. He looked just as menacing as ever. She swallowed hard and stepped back again.

"Billy you promised…" Tina warned.

Out of the corner of her eye Nicole could see Bodie move closer, ready to stop Billy if things escalated.

Nicole smiled nervously hoping that he was just messing with her, but Billy advanced on her. His eyes were dark, cold, and emotionless. He took each step slowly and deliberately, like a cat toying with a mouse.

Before she had time to react he lunged forward and threw her over his shoulder. She could hear his deep laugh as the room breathed out a collective sigh of relief. He spun her around, showing off to the crowd.

"Put me down Darley!" She squealed, trying to wriggle her way free.

"Like I said, you hit pretty hard…"

She saw his hand hovering above her rear.

"Don't you dare!"

"…but I think I hit harder."

_WHACK!_

The sound echoed about the room and was soon drowned out by laughter.

Nicole yelped.

"Put me down!"

"Nope." He twirled her around, trying to persuade other people to give her a smack.

She giggled and pounded on his back with her fists, but it was ineffective.

"Billy if you don't put me down I'll bite your back."

"I'll bite your ass," he chuckled, but he slid her down to the floor.

She slapped him on the arm playfully.

"You're such a jerk."

But she checked her laugh when she looked past him and saw Gina silently raging.

She leaned in closer to Billy and whispered, "I have this odd feeling your girlfriend hates me."

He didn't even try to be discreet as he looked over his shoulder.

"She ain't my girlfriend, just some chick that's a good, easy screw."

"Well either way you might want to go over there and take that bottle out of her hand before she chucks it at your head."

"She does look rather murderous huh?" Billy winked.

He sauntered his way back to Gina as if nothing happened, but her eyes shot daggers at Nicole.

Tina appeared at Nicole's side.

"I'm not sure what the hell that was, but it sure pissed Gina off. Good job."

She took her beer back from Tina.

"I think you have Billy to thank for that. I was as surprised as she was."

"I don't care who I have to thank, as long as I get to see that horse faced bitch upset, I'm happy."

The rest of the night passed with much less excitement. Baggy seemed to be working some sort of charm on Marcy, who was acting rather giggly as they chattered away, and to Nicole and Tina's amusement they watched as Bodie tried on multiple occasions to flirt with Jenn, getting shot down each and every time. Since the incident with Billy and Nicole earlier, Gina made sure not to leave his side, and the few times he joined a group of people with Nicole in it she found a reason to pull him away. Nicole could tell she was Gina's _favorite _person, and once for fun she actually joined Billy, Bodie, Tommy and Gina in a conversation just to see her reaction.

It was close to 2am when Baggy came around to say his goodbyes.

"You're leaving?" Nicole asked, slightly surprised that he would leave when he was doing so well with Marcy.

"Yeah, I gotta go let Heco off."

"Do you think you would mind dropping me off on your way? I hate asking but I also really hate taking the bus."

"Sure thing Sis, besides the bus will be full of creeps, especially tonight."

"Tell me about it, and I'd probably end up sitting next to the one with a nurse fetish."

He nodded.

"Alright well let me say goodbye and grab my stuff and we can head out."

She gave her friends all hugs goodbye and ducked into Tina's room to grab her sheet and purse. When she emerged minutes later Baggy was back on the sofa with Marcy. She started making her way over when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"Come on, I'll take ya."

Nicole was surprised to find Billy holding his keys and motioning her towards the door, but she shrugged and followed him out.

"What about Gina?" She asked once they reached the parking lot.

He lit up a cigarette.

"She can take a cab. I told Baggy I'd cover for him. Maybe at least one of us will get laid tonight."

"Guess she wasn't too impressed with you smacking another girl on the ass huh?"

He exhaled smoke.

"No, that she got over. It was when I told her to shut the fuck up with her endless bitching about shit that she lost it."

He unlocked the passenger door and opened it for her.

"Thanks," she said as she sunk down into the seat.

He wrenched his own door open and plopped down. The car roared to life as he turned the key in the ignition and shifted gears.

They drove in silence down the deserted streets. Nicole gazed out the window as if in a trance.

"You can roll your window down if you want." Billy broke the silence, causing her to jump in surprise. He laughed at her reaction. "Did I scare you?"

She shoved his arm.

"Shut up, you didn't scare me. You just startled me." She rolled her window down, thankful that it was finally beginning to cool down outside.

They pulled up to a red light and Billy flicked his cigarette out the window. Nicole was resting her head in her hand with her elbow propped up against the door.

Billy watched her for a minute before smacking her on the shoulder. She turned to look at him, confused.

"What was that for?"

"For earlier, you hit me first."

She rolled her eyes and turned back to the window.

A few minutes later and Billy was pulling up to her apartment. He stopped the car and Nicole turned to look at him.

"What?"

She leaned over in her seat getting closer to him.

"Thanks for the ride," she said in a breathy voice, moving even closer. She angled her head to the side and bit her lip seductively.

Billy leaned in and Nicole grinned.

Right before their lips met she pulled back and smacked him across the face.

She jumped out of the car quickly, and once she was safely on the sidewalk leaned down to look through the passenger window.

"_That's_ for earlier." She grinned.

Even in the dark she could see Billy's eyes narrow. She heard him shift gears and watched as he flew through her parking lot. She didn't expect what came next. He pulled swiftly into a parking space and jumped out of his car. The slam of the car door rang out through the quiet apartment complex. At first she was worried she'd actually made him angry, but as he stalked towards her he walked under a lamp post and she could see the playful expression on his face. She started backing up and as she did so he broke out into a run. Nicole screamed and ran for her door. She made it but Billy wasn't far behind. She hastily pulled her key out and tried over and over again to stick it in the lock until finally she managed to get it. She could hear Billy's footsteps coming up fast. Her hand was on the doorknob and she turned it just in time for Billy to collide with her and the door, sending it flying open. She stumbled forward with the force of the collision but he had an arm wrapped around her. She giggled and tried to wriggle her way free but he whipped her around to face him. One hand was gripping the back of her neck while the other had her by the waist. He pulled her to him roughly and his lips slammed into hers. Nicole was shocked, but to her own amazement she found herself pulling closer instead of pushing him away. His lips were soft and warm against hers, and every now and then he'd nip her bottom lip, something which always drove her wild. He freed the hand around her waist and used it to hold the door open as he pushed her inside, the other hand keeping a tight grip on her neck. Once they were both inside Billy kicked the door closed and his hand was back at her waist, pulling her hips closer to his.

"Wait, wait!" Nicole pushed him away, something which required much force. "I gotta see if Paul's here," she whispered.

"Paul?" She called out louder.

Billy moved down to her neck, nibbling it as he allowed his hands to roam.

"Stop it," she giggled. "Paul are you here?" She called out again.

"Paul?" Billy chimed in, smiling as Nicole clamped her hand over his mouth.

"Shhhh," she laughed but Paul was nowhere to be seen.

She took her hand off his mouth and leaned up to kiss him.

"Come on," she murmured and grabbed him with both hands by the shirt collar, leading him towards her room.

Billy allowed himself to be lead, but once they were in her room with the door closed he took control.

Nicole's back slammed against the wall. Billy was everywhere at once: unbuttoning her dress, pulling her hair down, kissing her hungrily. Everything was happening so fast.

It took only a few agile movements for Nicole to kick her heels off and get out of her tights while still remaining pinned to the wall. Her hat was the next thing to go as she ripped it from her hair. Then she shoved him back roughly and began tugging at his shirt. He pushed her hands aside impatiently and pulled it over his head. In the dark she could still make out the dark lines of his tattoo and how it snaked from his arms to his neck. She reached out to trace the thick, black lines on his neck. Her fingers lightly grazed the tribal marks; what she had once found intimidating she now found mesmerizing.

Billy grabbed her outstretched arm and pulled her to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and their lips crashed into each other eagerly. He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around him. She could feel the muscles in his arms tense around her as he carried her. They reached her dresser and Billy cleared it off with one quick swipe of his arm. She heard the clatter of her things hitting the floor, but she didn't care. She could have had a million dollar antique vase on the dresser and she wouldn't have cared. He set her down on the dresser and immediately found her mouth again. Nicole ran her nails down and back up his back, pulling him closer, which earned her an animalistic growl. Billy began shoving her half unbuttoned dress up forcefully, caressing her thighs as he did so. Her hands dropped to his belt buckle and he stepped back for a moment, dropping his head to watch her hands working frantically to undo it. When she finally managed to get it unhooked she slid off the dresser. Billy backed up to give her room. Nicole began backing away from him and towards her bed, unbuttoning the rest of her dress teasingly. He took his time following her; he was enjoying the show she putting on for him. Once she reached the bed he moved in slowly and assuredly. She watched him, leaning back on the bed as she did so. When he finally reached her he lowered himself down on top of her, careful not to put too much weight on her. Her hands gripped his shoulders and pulled him closer. His mouth was on hers again, kissing her passionately.

Nicole pulled away with a sudden realization. Billy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"Wait, what about Heco?" She asked, sounding slightly out of breath.

"What?" He snarled, not comprehending at first.

"The corner. Heco will be waiting for you."

"He owes me. Now shut up."

She took his advice and did exactly that.

Nicole rolled over the next morning and found her bed empty. It wasn't really a surprise. She didn't expect Billy to stick around, and truthfully she didn't want him to. The night before meant as little to her as it probably did to him. She just hoped her brother wasn't home when Billy snuck out.

She groaned as she stepped out of bed. Her room was a mess. Her clothes were scattered everywhere and all of the jewelry, perfume bottles, and picture frames that had been on her dresser now lay in a pile on her floor. She stepped over everything and pulled out a pair of sweatpants and a wife beater from one of her drawers, deciding to deal with the mess after breakfast.

Paul was in the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal when she walked.

"Morning," she said apprehensively.

"Morning," Paul replied and continued munching.

Nicole breathed a sigh of relief.

"So how was it with Joe last night?"

He shrugged. "It was fine."

She noticed a red tinge forming in his cheeks and she knew he wasn't telling her everything, but she let it pass because she knew she would have to lie too.

"How was the party?"

"It was fun. You should have come. You would have loved Jenn's costume. She was a lifeguard."

Now Paul's cheeks clearly flushed red. He had a crush on Jenn since the first time he met her.

"Har har," he muttered.

Nicole had just gotten everything put back on her dresser when the doorbell rang. She heard Paul walk down the hall and prayed to God that it wasn't Billy at the door.

"Nic," he called, "Tina's here."

_Phew_

"Come on in T, I'm in my room."

Tina came in and shut the door behind her. Nicole didn't like the mischievous smile on her face.

"So…"

"What?" Nicole tried to act clueless.

"Did my dress get you laid or what?"

Nicole turned her back to Tina and pretended to continue straightening the things on her dresser.

"You skank! I knew it!"

Nicole turned and motioned for Tina to keep her voice down.

"Shhh! I don't think Paul would find it quite so exciting."

Tina was giddy as a schoolgirl.

"So how was it?"

"Amazing," Nicole grinned. "It's been far too long."

"So what happened? Give me details woman!"

Nicole shook her head and blushed.

"I don't know what to tell you. It was quick and dirty."

"Did you use a condom?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Of course."

Tina continued prodding her for the better part of ten minutes.

"I don't know what else to tell you," Nicole finally said, "It was just a one night stand."

Tina sighed. "I figured. From what I hear Billy isn't one for sticking around."

"Trust me, for that I'm thankful."

"Oh but you should have seen Gina after you two left last night. She threw such a fit. I would have kicked her out if it wasn't so entertaining. I would watch out though. She's got it in for you now."

"Yeah yeah, Barbie's real scary," Nicole's response dripped with sarcasm.

Tina's face suddenly brightened with excitement.

"I almost forgot! You weren't the only one getting some last night."

"What do you mean?"

"Marcy left with Baggy."

Nicole's eyes widened.

"No way!"

"Yeah, I've been calling her all morning but she hasn't answered. I'm taking it as a good sign."

"So either she got laid or Baggy killed her?"

"Way to look on the bright side." Tina chucked a pillow at her.

Nicole just smiled and sat down on her bed next to her friend.

"I think a celebratory lunch is in order. Why don't we go out?"

Nicole ran a hand through her hair. She knew Tina wouldn't let her off that easy and lunch would just be an excuse to interrogate her more.

"Sure, why not," she relented. "Let me get dressed first. Maybe while we're at it we can get a hold of Marcy and she can join in the celebration."


End file.
